The Power of Rotary, even at a distance.
A few years ago my wife Lee Ford-Jones and I had a wonderful opportunity to meet Mrs. Jehan Sadat, wife of the late Egyptian president, and to hear from her first hand about the project she developed for women’s cooperatives in Egypt where they took refurbished sewing machines and sewed their way out of poverty. Initially I thought I could involve Rotary to obtain machines here in Canada and ship them out to her projects. Thinking about the old Aladdin story I had an idea: New Lamps for Old! what about “New Sewing Machines for Old!”, where we would obtain a really nice, all singin’ all dancin’ sewing machine and have a lottery to win the machine if people would only hand in their old machines languishing in cupboards and attics . The idea of sending them to Egypt fizzled when I realized that there was a voltage difference.
Lee, as part of her Hospital for Sick Children based Social Paediatrics initiative, has been working with groups in a very disadvantaged area of Toronto trying to provide more opportunities for the disadvantaged youth among this very needy and deserving, largely immigrant population. After hearing from the community and neighbourhood leaders themselves that they might benefit from a similar program right here at home, we decided to change tracks and donate them there, in Toronto.
I got a bit of interest in the lottery idea from sewing machine shops but no real traction until Lee introduced me to a fellow Rotarian, Linda Peel-Devitt from Oakville Sewing Centre who liked the lottery idea, but seeing pitfalls, suggested that we just get on with it and buy some inexpensive, some new and some refurbished machines with a seal of approval of durability and quality. With several car trips from Burlington to the Jane Finch area, along with around 20 machines, Lee took a large car load of several thousand dollars worth of gorgeous material donated by Linda. Lee delivered it, pushed in into her car, pressed down and overflowing, to a couple of women’s cooperatives in the Jane Finch area where they would use it for among other things, Caribana costumes. Their talent knows no bounds and they have a wonderful elderly lady from Trinidad who teaches and directs the women. All this was done unofficially in the name of Rotary, firstly through Lee’s connection with Burlington Central and then in association with Linda’s Club.
The machines were enthusiastically received and the ladies have done some extraordinary things with the material. Ladies from Burma accustomed to weave their own fabric while in refugee camps were among those who sewed beautiful clothes.
Linda even went up to the co-ops along with some ladies to do some volunteer teaching. To hire someone to teach costs around $25 per hour but even that is out of the reach of people there, and finding funds is a challenge.
What can be done at that distance can more easily be done close to home. The Rotary Club of Burlington Central has supported ROCK’s Burloak and Warwick Court’s Our Community Cares projects. These community projects are in need of a similar sewing program and steps have already been taken to establish one but they are in need more of teachers than of materials.
I am appealing to the club and to its friends for skilled volunteers to teach sewing to such a group. If there is anyone who is in possession of such skills and would like to consider donating some of their time in teaching, would they be prepared to have a discussion with the project leaders to see what is required and whether it would work for them?
There is little more valuable than the possession of a skill. If you have competence you are never truly poor. Too many young people are entering adulthood with no abilities outside of academic work and the ability to manipulate their technological gadgets. This project could see to it that a number of young people and young adults develop those skills.
Please contact me, Anthony Ford-Jones at afordjones@mac.com or 905-634-1548 for offers of help of any ideas that might push this idea forward for the benefit of our community.