Thank you, Cape Cod

Saturday was the last day I set up a table at the South Chatham Community Church Benefit shop to sell items to raise money for treadle sewing machines for our graduates and to sell items they made. We plan to return to Haiti the first week of December for a graduation ceremony, when we will give each graduate her sewing machine.

Here is our progress to date: So far, five sewing machines have been sponsored by individuals who took care of an entire machine (one generous soul sponsored two). One machine was sponsored through combined donations ranging from $2 to $50.  And five machines have been sponsored through items I have made with help from friends.  These include two fabric baskets, 4 fall placemats, ten yoga bags, and 62 zip pouches.

The people who helped me are too numerous to name, but I especially want to thank Ruth Ann, who worked in my studio as we set up an assembly line of zip pouch construction and canvassed the neighborhood collecting potato chip bags and selling pouches to neighbors and relatives, and Martha, who collected vast quantities of fabric for yoga bags.  I also would like to thank the South Chatham Community Church Benefit Shop, who let me set up a table outside their shop to sell these items, and the ladies from the Tuesday morning Bible Study, who stayed after to help cut out yoga bag kits for us to bring to Haiti to teach this project to our graduates.  Also, thanks to June for her generous fabric donations and Lou, who has watched all summer for items donated at the swap shop that we could use.  Thanks to the many friends and relatives who have saved me their candy and potato chip bags to be made into zip pouches.

I have learned that two of our students left the program since we last visited Haiti, so twenty women will be graduating in December and receiving sewing machines, so we need sponsorship for nine more.  A couple of people from Florida told me before I left that they would sponsor a machine when I get back, but I will continue to accept donations on this website and to sell items that were made to benefit the sewing machine fund as well at items made by our students in Haiti.

Thanks again, Cape Cod, and look out Florida, here I come.