Saxony stitchers

When it comes to mission works, some people go by giving, some give by going, and others do their part -- by sewing. A group of women at the Saxony Village Retirement Community in Cape Girardeau -- the Saxony Stitchers, as they have dubbed themselves -- began meeting in fall 2014 to sew dresses to send overseas to children in need through Operation Christmas Child.

Elizabeth Spencer decided to start the stitching group upon her daughter-in-law's suggestion. She pitched the idea to her friend, Mary Hitt, whom she wanted on board the project.

"She does a lot of sewing and is very mission-minded," Spencer said of her friend.

Hitt gladly took the challenge.

"Elizabeth and I are friends," she said, "and she was enthusiastic. I have some extra time on my hands, and I decided to join her."

Together, the women began to put things in motion.

"Elizabeth has the good ideas, and I am sort of the organizer," said Hitt.

Once the decision was made, it was time to gather their team.

"We advertised through our newsletter here at Saxony," said Spencer. "We just set a time and invited people, and they came and they helped." They now have about 10 in their sewing group, which meets in a spare room at Saxony Village.

"It takes quite a few hands and heads to get it going, and the faithful few will carry it out. I think it's been a success, and I enjoy it," Hitt said.

Those few hands are sewing dresses for children and teenagers, who open boxes and find their new attire. Operation Christmas Child is known for its holiday shoe-box ministry.

"We chose them because they also include information about Jesus Christ, and that's part of our mission," Spencer said.

To fulfill that mission, they needed sewing machines, and were able to purchase four, thanks to a grant from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, and are working on another grant for more machines and necessary supplies.

There's more work than there are sewing machines, so they use everyone to get the job done. Said Spencer, "We have women who come and cut out patterns and women who cut pieces of elastic for us."

"We've become good friends," Spencer said.

Agreeing, Hitt praised what she called the "camaraderie among us," and added, "We meet and plan and do our work. It's a fun time together, as well as doing something worthwhile."

Saxony Stitchers partners with Bethany Baptist Church in Cape Girardeau, through which they will send 24 dresses to El Salvador. They also assist Zonta, a women's organization dedicated to furthering women in business. When Zonta members head to Haiti at the end of October, they will have with them 24 dresses made by Saxony Stitchers.

The group also does home mission work. They collaborate with St. Vincent's Catholic Church in Cape Girardeau to construct backpacks for homeless people in St. Louis. Virginia Whitlock, who is a part of the stitching group, spearheads that collaboration, called Ugly Quilts. According to Hitt, St. Vincent's women's auxiliary is very active in that.

"They needed people who would tie tack the three layers on these quilts, so we started doing that," said Hitt, adding, "Virginia Whitlock pretty much took it over. She's very good at that."

These go to St. Louis disaster relief areas and local police stations for dispersal. The quilts are rolled up like a bedroll and tied. They include two drawstring bags; one has hygiene products, and the other has a scarf, gloves, cap for warmth, and other such items for homeless people. These bags go inside the ugly quilts.

After they do the tie tacks, the St. Vincent's women finish the edges. Hitt said, "They do a marvelous job. We're just a helper on this end of what goes on with them."

Saxony Stitchers sew shorts for boys, dolls for girls, sock monkeys and sock dogs, in addition to the dresses they send to other nations. They also make burp cloths and crib sheets to donate to Options for Women and Birthright, both in Cape Girardeau, along with some of their sock animals.

Spencer said, "I think what motivates a lot of us is we remember getting little Christmas dresses for our own children and grandchildren." Her greatest joy is "thinking about the children when they receive these."

Hitt receives joy when seeing the finished product. "After we've completed a dress, we like to think how that's going to look on someone and the happiness of a bright colorful dress, a toy -- having a part in that and not just sitting back, but participating in bringing joy to someone and using our time wisely for other people and not just ourselves."

The work is not without challenges, however, said Hitt. The participants are elderly, and a lot of women who would like to help don't sew anymore because of arthritis and other physical problems. "So it's been a few of us who have been able to do this large project," she said. However, considering that challenge, Hitt said, it is "amazing that we've stuck with it and been faithful." She is pleased they have added more ladies who have come into the village.

Both Spencer and Hitt are grateful for every hand that has helped, the grant they have received and donations given. Without that support, they would not have been able to make 125 dresses that went to Mexico in 2014, 88 dresses they sent to Heart for Africa this year, 24 shorts for boys, a dozen tote bags for Birthright and another dozen for Options for Women, in addition to their other mission work around the world.