TIE SOME FASKnotsand Pass Them Around Town or School
The FAS Knot – A Symbol for Our Time
We have been pleased by the enthusiasm that volunteers from New Zealand to Arctic Alaska and Canada’s northern territories of Yukon and Nunavut to South Africa have expressed for our unique, wearable symbol, the “FAS Knot.” Each FAS Knot can be easily made in about a minute, for less than ten cents, and can be used as a fund-raiser ($2-$5 each) or given away as reminders of the work we all do to help prevent FASD.
This piece of knotted cord was designed in memory of Abel Dorris, 1968-1991, whose brief and poignant life resulted in the groundbreaking 1989 book about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, “The Broken Cord,” written by his father, Michael Dorris, 1945-1997.
The broken cord may refer to the umbilical cord, the spinal cord, the nervous system, the cord between the generations, or the cable on an elevator. Michael Dorris wrote that if we back off on our children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects (i.e. Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder), they will sink and crash like an elevator once the cable is snapped.
Years later, a loving community around the world reconnected the broken cord, and the FAS Knot is our symbol. The cord is tied in a square knot, sometimes called a reef knot, the favored knot for reconnecting a broken line or cord. The knot is stronger than the cord itself, and cannot be broken or snapped.
To make the FAS Knot, we suggest an eight-inch piece of 3/16″ white cord, available in most hardware stores for a few cents per foot. You make a circle approximately the size of your thumb, then tie right over left and under; left over right and under. It should look like two loops intertwined. (Volunteers in Germany and New Zealand use a thinner cord, and make a more discreet knot. The choice is up to you.)
By choosing a cord instead of a ribbon, we are separating ourselves from all of the other campaigns. We are not just another cause trying to raise money – we represent those millions of individuals and their families who have gone unrecognized, unidentified, neglected on this continent and throughout the world.
The circle symbolizes the womb, a baby’s head, the human brain, the earth. And we, a planet-size network of people who care about people living with FASD, are the knot that will make them whole. If women did not drink in pregnancy, FASD would be totally eliminated.
Our long-range goal is to rename this small piece of cord, “The FAS Not!”
The FAS Knot lapel pin is a more recent innovation and can also be used for fund raising. Many groups resell the pin for $5 or $6.
The pin is available for the low cost of C$3/pin for orders of 25 or more. Shipping is free for orders of 100 or more. The pin is white enamel with a faux gold edge and is approximately 1.8 cm wide. The FAS Knot lapel pin is a registered trademark of FASworld Canada. The lapel pin may not be replicated, copied or incorporated into any other design without specific written permission from FASworld Canada.
The original FAS Knot was designed by Bonnie Buxton and Brian Philcox, and is an official symbol of FASworld. You can find step-by-step photos above. We encourage groups supporting FASD endeavours to use it for promotion or fund-raising, and ask only that you notify us before doing so.
E-mail us at info@fasworld.comHow to Make a FAS Knot
THE FAS KNOT STORY
“A threefold cord is not quickly broken.”
–The Bible, Ecclesiastes IV, 10
In 1999, volunteers from New Zealand and South Africa to Nunavut used the FAS Knot as a symbol of our worldwide campaign to inform the world about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and related disorders.
This piece of knotted cord was designed in memory of Abel Dorris, 1968-1991, whose brief and poignant life resulted in the groundbreaking 1989 book about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, The Broken Cord, written by his father, Michael Dorris, 1945-1997.
The broken cord may refer to the umbilical cord, the spinal cord, the nervous system, the cord between the generations, or the cable on an elevator. Michael Dorris wrote that if we back off on our children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects, they will sink like an elevator once the cable is snapped. Ten years after Dorris’s book, a loving community around the world reconnected the broken cord, developing the FAS Knot as our symbol.
Each knot can be made easily and cheaply in less than a minute. The cord is tied in a square knot, sometimes called a reef knot, the favoured knot for reconnecting a broken line or cord. The knot is stronger than the cord itself, and cannot be broken or snapped. You may want to sell the knots for $2-$5, or ask for donations.
Volunteers in the U.S. and Canada generally use an eight-inch piece of 3/16″ white cord, available in most hardware stores for a few cents per foot. Volunteers in New Zealand and Germany have made smaller, more discreet FAS Knots, using thinner cord. Make a circle approximately the size of your thumb (possibly smaller if you use a thinner cord), then tie right over left and under; left over right and under. Using a straight pin or safety pin, pin this to your lapel or other garment with the loop above and the knot below.
Step-by-step photos of the FAS Knot may be seen on the website at www.come-over.to/FASDAY/manual.htm
We have chosen a cord instead of a ribbon, to separate ourselves from all of the other campaigns. We are not just another cause trying to raise money — we represent those millions of individuals and their families who have gone unrecognized, unidentified, neglected on this continent and throughout the world.
The circle symbolizes the womb, a baby’s head, the human brain, the earth. And we, a planet-size network of people who care about people living with FAS, are the knot that will make them whole. FAS is totally preventable. We must create a society in which everyone recognizes that there is no lower threshold for drinking in pregnancy. Our long-range goal is to rename this small piece of cord, “The FAS Not!”
The FAS Knot was designed by Bonnie Buxton and Brian Philcox, trademark pending.
Copy for FAS Knot Scroll (optional)
(You may want to print a one-page sheet, roll it up in a scroll, and tuck each one inside the loop of a FAS Knot. The sheet can contain information about the program, and also includes this information about the Knot.)
THE FAS KNOT
This piece of knotted cord was designed in memory of Abel Dorris, 1968-1991, whose brief and poignant life resulted in the groundbreaking 1989 book about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, “The Broken Cord,” written by his father, Michael Dorris, 1945-1997.
The broken cord may refer to the umbilical cord, the spinal cord, the nervous system, the cord between the generations, or the cable on an elevator. Michael Dorris wrote that if we back off on our children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects, they will sink like an elevator once the cable is snapped.
The circle symbolizes the womb, a baby’s head, the human brain, the earth. And we, a planet-size network of people who care about people living with FAS, are the knot that will make them whole. FAS is totally preventable. We must create a society in which everyone recognizes that there is no lower threshold for drinking in pregnancy. Our long-range goal is to rename this small piece of cord, “The FAS Not!”
FASD WITH HOPE 