Students Sew Dresses For Children

PRESCOTT - Two Prescott High School students spent their class time in Home Economics to sew dresses for needy children in Africa.

Their teacher Susan De- Ruwe is part of the educational sorority Alpha Gamma, which provided $50 for materials and fabric if students spent their time on creating the dresses.

DeRuwe said the dresses are very simple, made of fabric she purchased at St. Vincent De Paul or even pillow cases. Her two students Adriana Benito, 18, and Eva Esquivel, 16, made 10 dresses that will be sent to Wisconsin, and then on to Africa. Before they are sent off, the dresses are on display at the school in Prescott.

According to the Little Dresses for Africa website, this non-profit organization provides relief to orphanages, churches and schools in Africa as well as these little dresses made out of fabrics like pillow cases.

" To date we have received dresses and donations from all 50 states across the U.S.A. and received well over 560,000 little dresses that have been distributed in 31 countries of Africa," according to the website.

The organization doesn't stop with Africa, but also sends dresses where needed, including to Honduras, Guatemala, the Philippines, Cambodia, Mexico and thousands and thousands to Haiti. In addition, the organization has sends dresses to children in need right here in the United States, in the Appalachian Mountains and South Dakota.

"It was a simple project that they could (use) to get started on basic sewing skills," DeRuwe said. "And they do something to help the world."

DeRuwe said the dresses didn't take too long after they students got the hang of it. After they gained some experience with the process, they were able to make one dress in about 1.5 hours. The girls chose bright fabrics from what DeRuwe had purchased and seemed to really enjoy the project, she said.

DeRuwe had to make the $50 go far. She said she was surprised that the most expensive material wasn't the fabric, but the spools of thread and the binding for the arm holes of the dresses.

"It didn't take long and the $50 was spent," she said.

At the high school, sewing is only taught every other year, DeRuwe said. And typically the students make stuffed animals from kits. This was a new challenge for her students, but one that they found joy in and the students said they want to continue making dresses.She said they made five dresses each. They had also made the stuffed animals and are now working on pillow cases. And both Benito and Esquivel have little sisters whom they want to make dresses for.

"It's a very good cause and it's pretty simple to make a dress," Esquivel said. "Just two class periods and you're done."

Neither Benito nor Esquivel said they had helped a relief organization like this before and it made them happy to make a difference.

"I learned a lot," Benito said. "It was a lot fun (and I liked) the fact that we were making them for kids in Africa."

It costs an average of about $2 per dress to get the dresses to the children. The organization is looking for donations to help with shipping costs. You can learn more at www.littledressesforafrica.org/blog/.