Does anyone else have this in your area? A LYS here called Lint gives away this pattern for cranes to give as a symbol of peace. Read about it here:
Scroll down a bit till you see the knitted crane. and here’s some pics:
I’m making one right now, it’s really easy.
Here is a link to the pattern itself (I couldn’t find one on Lint’s site or at Knitowar): http://yarnboy.com/blogimages/cranepattern.doc
Note that the pattern is in a wonky Word file, but you should be able to decipher it.
I remember reading those stories when I was in school. I thought they were really neat.