Using Existing Resources to Make Something Useful

USING EXISTING RESOURCES TO MAKE SOMETHING NEW AND USEFUL

By Soffi Carlson, Program Manager

Throughout this unusual past year, homelife and daily needs have been a huge focus for Hammer’s Program Managers. I have been replacing old stuff and focusing on improving the look and efficiency of items within my program. This brought me to collecting a sad stack of bath towels that were not in the best shape for their intended purpose. Around the same time, staff asked me to get bibs to protect clothing during mealtimes…and a light bulb went on. I strive to obtain items that are durable yet reasonably priced. Bibs from online suppliers are not great and they need to be replaced often. But with the stack of old towels in hand, I thought we could repurpose them — which is where the new bibs idea was born!

I contacted the Volunteer Department about this idea, and they put me in touch with a great sewing volunteer, LeeAnn. We discussed materials needed to complete the project, as well as how best to deliver everything in these socially distant times. LeeAnn gave me a couple of prototypes to try out before continuing with the project to be sure they worked as intended. Needless to say, the bibs were great, so I asked LeeAnn to go ahead and make the rest.

“Soffi was great to work with. She had a vision and got me everything I needed to make the bibs and specialty face masks for the individuals at Lee Avenue.” —LeeAnn Silver, volunteer seamstress old towels which would have been tossed. The final cost for each bib is around five dollars; a fraction of what they cost online. And more importantly, we’ll have these bibs for several years, saving us a lot of money. We are so grateful for what might seem like a small thing to many, but having these bibs made helps our budget while simultaneously keeping life less messy during mealtimes. Plus, it's a great way to reduce, reuse, and recycle!

We couldn’t have accomplished this without our great Hammer volunteer, LeeAnn. Thank you, LeeAnn,