Being a senior missionary couple in a small center for young single adults has it's challenges as well as blessings. After we arrived, we discovered that we basically needed to create our own mission. We felt very strongly that there needed to be some kind of service project that would both teach a skill and provide a service for people in need. As I considered my "skills," quilting seemed to be one that might work here. Then we started looking for basic quilting supplies like fabric and batting. There is a big textile industry here in Romania but most of the fabric that we found was the kind you use in upholstery or draperies. Because quilters are the most generous people I know, a plea for fabric went out to friends and family back home. Then there was the issue of sewing machines. The mission has an old Kenmore machine (it has a sticker from a shop in Portland, Oregon) that has a converter. When I took it for a spin I felt like I was driving a race car. After 10 minutes the engine started to smoke. Then a wonderful senior missionary went home leaving me with a European sewing machine. It worked! While waiting for fabric to arrive, the Wolseys who are humanitarian aid missionaries here asked if I would like to have the YSAs make 50 school bags. "Sure", I said. How hard could it be? Well, when we put the idea out to them they looked at us like we were crazy. Sew with a machine? One of them remembered seeing her grandmother use a treadle machine a long time ago. Being an optimist, I thought this was great. Now, we would be able to assess how much training would be needed to get ready for the quilt project.
George, Cami and Alina
George loved the sewing machine - remember the race car reference!
Cami became quite good at pinning.
We did finally complete 50 bags. Missionaries filled the first batch of bags with school supplies for children in a Roma village.
Each child received a backpack and a blue bag with school supplies.
This is the bloc where these children live.
Then at the senior missionary conference in October we completed the project by filling the last of the blue bags with hygiene supplies.
Well done, YSAs!
More to come on the quilt project.
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