She just wanted to clean out a few items in her sewing room, but Colette Shauf has now found herself in a swirling, twirling vortex of sewing machine bobbins and a growing assembly line of good deeds performed by good friends.聽
鈥淭his is not a formal organization or agency,鈥� Shauf said with a laugh during a sunny morning in an activity room on the second floor of Heritage Manor on the city鈥檚 east side, where many of the volunteers now reside.聽
鈥淚 wanted to make a few little dresses, for girls in developing countries, to use up some of the extra material I had, and now I have this,鈥� she added with another laugh as she points to a miniature assembly line of eager seamstresses seated at sewing tables, stitching and assembling dresses in a most efficient manner.聽
Shauf admits, somewhat hesitantly, that she now has a steady goal of producing 50 little dresses per session, but that is subject to the willingness and schedules of her volunteer helpers, who have become friends as well as dedicated contributors.聽
鈥淚t鈥檚 slave-like conditions you know,鈥� joked Mary Price, as she laboured at her machine with a big grin on her face. 鈥淣o pay, just hard work. But we do get fed on occasion,鈥� she chuckled.聽
As if struck by a perfect sense of timing, a late morning pizza arrived with a knock on the door and the delivery of a hot pie.聽
The dresses have been sent to India, Africa, Haiti, 麻豆视频 America and Mexico in the past. Shauf said the delivery system has come about by chance and a little bit of communication.聽
The dresses are deliverd by other willing Estevan and area volunteers who will find themselves with an added suitcase filled with the dresses, to distribute, as they see fit, when visiting their sites in the developing nations and making their charitable contributions that come in various forms.聽
The suitcases themselves are usually extremely well-used and Shauf tells the travellers just to leave them behind. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not going to have to bring them back. Leave them and someone will make good use of them, as well as the dresses,鈥� Shauf said.聽
The frocks, usually colourful with simple patterns and designs, come in small, medium and large with simple straps.聽
Shauf said the assembly line idea slowly developed, since she only had limited time to spend on the project. She 鈥渃onscripted Rita, and then Carol got involved,鈥� she said, referring to volunteers Rita Bezaire and Carol Barrett, original members of the sewing line.聽
Shauf does the pattern cutting and surging and the team members at the sewing machines do the stitching, rapidly and efficiently. Two additional volunteers, on this day were Linda Hanson and Jan Park, who took on the task of sewing on the required buttons.聽
鈥淭he final touch is the addition of a Canada pin,鈥� said Shauf.聽
When time and material permits, the team will make several pairs of undergarments for the little girls.
The team might also include some baby blankets, depending on the fabrics made available by donors.聽
鈥淚 like to send some sewing kits with every suitcase of dresses so buttons can be re-sewn on, or repairs can be made when necessary,鈥� she added.聽
She finds out about the travelling volunteers the same way she finds out about volunteer sewing talent. She knows people who know other people who are planning on visiting another country to do a little charitable work. Almost all of them are willing to haul an extra bag filled with colourful new dresses that will bring a big smile from a small, delighted recipient.聽
鈥淚t鈥檚 about trust I guess. People who are willing to do this type of work aren鈥檛 going to do anything to sabotage our good intentions now are they?鈥澛�
Shauf said she is always pleasantly surprised by the fact that when a sewing day is planned and the word goes out, there always seems to be a new face, or two, at a sewing machine or at the button placement table, which was the case for Park and Hanson on this particular day. Others involved in this particular session included Micki Blackstock at the ironing board and sewer Minnie Flood.聽
鈥淣o wages though, remember that. She鈥檚 a tough task master,鈥� Price exclaimed from her machine. 鈥淚f we work hard, we鈥檒l get a break,鈥� she added with another laugh.聽
And a break they do get, around noon, and the load lightens up during the afternoon when the hectic pace of morning production is lessened while the dresses get finishing touches and the target is reached once again.聽
鈥淭here are other sewing circles that do clothing too. This isn鈥檛 the only one. Some produce clothing for youngsters, including boys, and others might do layettes for babies. It鈥檚 just that we have all this talent and they are so generous with their time, it makes us all feel pretty good that we can do these things for others,鈥� said Shauf.聽
鈥淣o wages though, remember to mention that for sure,鈥� said Price again, jokingly, as she turned her attention to a tiny blue frock that was about to earn her loving touch and attention. 聽
鈥淚 look back and remember I just wanted to clean out my sewing room three years ago, and, now, the donations of fabric and accessories has meant my sewing room has more in it than ever before,鈥� Shauf added with another big chuckle. 鈥淪o that wasn鈥檛 such a great plan!鈥�
Or maybe it was? 聽
