Religious associates sew children's clothing

PHOTO BY MARYANN KROMER Sister Gemma Fenbert rings a bell for the first completed garment of the day. PHOTO BY MARYANN KROMER Sister Pat Froning picks up scraps as Judy Hofmann of Fostoria works on shorts at the sewing machine. Saturday, 22 volunteers converted the McMillen Conference Center at Mercy Health – Tiffin Hospital into a sewing workshop. Some of those attending were attaching patterns to the fabric while others cut out the pieces. At other stations, people ironed hems or cut out tags. Sewing machines hummed to stitch the seams and apply elastic, decorative ruffles and trims. Coming from Tiffin, Fostoria, Marysville, Toledo and Canton, volunteers included Associates of the Sisters of Mercy and the Tiffin Sisters of St. Francis. "Associates" are lay men and women who assist religious orders in carrying out their missions, according to a press release from the hospital. Five groups of Associates have joined together to form Toledo Area Associates Networking Group. The sewing project is a joint effort to make children's clothing for Little Dresses for Africa, an organization that also accepts pairs of shorts and donates garments to children in need, especially orphaned girls. The action got underway at 9:30 a.m. and ran until 3 p.m. Sue Nowak, a Tiffin Franciscan associate who lives in Toledo, brought in stacks of donated fabrics in a rainbow of prints and solid colors. The group makes dresses in two styles and three sizes. "Our goal (for each service day) is to make 50 dresses or shorts," Nowak said. "Every time we finish a dress, we go to the podium and ring a bell." Lori Winnie had driven from Toledo for the service day in Tiffin. A member of Point Place United Church of Christ, it was Winnie who first told TAANG members about the Michigan-based charity. "A friend told me about it … we did it at my church. Then the Franciscans of Sylvania Associates started doing it," she said. Nowak said TAANG conducted two workshops in Toledo last year, and Saturday's event was the first one in Tiffin. Many Little Dresses items go to African countries, but some have been shipped to the Philippines and to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Winnie has taken the project even farther. She said she traveled to Africa in 2015 to deliver the clothing in person. The following year, she went to Vietnam for the same purpose. At TAANG's first service day in Toledo, Nowak said community members brought in a huge quantity of fabric donations. Cotton blends are the best for the project because most of the dresses and shorts are sent to areas with hot climates. Materials that are not suitable for the children's garments are passed on to other non-profit organizations, Nowak explained. "We have gotten wonderful donations," she said. The associates also have made up hundreds of bags of personal items for Doctors Without Borders, Nowak added. She said TAANG is to conduct another sewing day in the fall. Volunteers attach a tag to each article, explaining it was made by TAANG members in Northwest Ohio. Sewing donations can be dropped off at Mercy Health – Tiffin Hospital, 45 St. Lawrence Drive, or St. Francis Convent, 200 St. Francis Ave. To learn more about Little Dresses for Africa, visit www.little dressesforafrica.org or call (734) 789-7182.