Home of the Minneapolis/St.Paul  ASG Chapter

  Community Service

                                                 2012 Community Service Project

The Blanket Project

The Houston Chapter, host of ASG’s 2012 annual conference invites, all ASG chapters to participate in The Blanket Project which addresses a need common to all communities and provides warmth and comfort to those most in need of it.  We have selected three types of blankets for our national community service project:  

• Lap blankets for hospice patients

• Lap blankets for veterans (VA hospitals or other veterans service programs)

• Receiving blankets for babies (indigent families)

We’re encouraging you to support your own communities by donating blankets locally; please find an organization in your area that can use these blankets. The Houston chapter is happy to accept blanket donations and they will be put to good use here, but we believe that helping the less in your own neighborhood builds a stronger community.  

Terry Nelson, our Chapter’s Community Service Chair, has decided that the Minneapolis – St. Paul  will focus on making comfort quilts for hospice patients.  The quilts can be fleece or cotton from 36”  square up to twin size.  No larger that twin size, please.  More information on sizes and how to  make suitable quilts and blankets can be found on the Community Service page of the ASG  national website:  http://asg.org/html/giving.html.

When complete, the items can be dropped off at the ASG Library at the Hancock Fabrics in Roseville, or by giving them to a CAB Member. Terry will then deliver them to local hospice organizations.  Or, if there is a hospice in your neighborhood, give them a call to find out if they would like to receive quilts and drop your donations there.  Make sure to provide the Chapter office  with contact information of your local hospice.

If you have any questions, call the Chapter office at 612-339-5568 and leave a message and someone will return the call.  Or send an email at asgmsp@hotmail.com

                                                  ASG Community Service Projects

Newborn Clothing for Hennepin County Medical Center 

The 2011 Chapter Community Service Project of making baby items for HCMC was a very popular project.  Many babies are delivered at this hospital have no clothing to go home in. With more and more people out of work, many new mothers do not have a basic sleeper or baby blanket for their newborn. Last year local ASG Chapter members put their skills and talents to use to fill this need.  If you enjoyed making baby items for HCMC, please continue to.  All items except bibs continue to be needed.  When complete, the items can be dropped off at HCMC by calling Roberta at 612-873-6090, or by leaving them in the ASG Library at the Hancock Fabrics in Roseville, or by giving  them to a CAB Member.  Terry, the Community Service Coordinator, will then deliver them to  HCMC. 

The Anti-Ouch Pouch is a pillow that hangs from the shoulder, fitting snugly under the arm to cushion  the area after breast surgery or during radiation treatment. The wedge shape gently holds the arm  away from the body when the user is standing. The strap holds the pillow in place without having to  use sore arm muscles to “clutch” it. The strap is adjustable and the fiberfill may be adjusted via the  overlapped opening.

The Minnesota Veterans Administration is not taking donations at this time. They have an adequate supply of sewn items at this time.

Nancy’s Notions sponsors the Little Dresses for Africa project with their Creative Kindness program.  Little Dresses for Africa is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to distribute dresses to little girls and britches to boys in remote villages of Africa.  When complete, you can send the garments to:  Nancy's Notions, Attention:  Little Dresses for Africa, PO Box 683, 333 Beichl Ave., Beaver Dam, WI 53916, and they will ship them to Africa. 

                                                       Make a Difference Day 2010

Once again, the Minneapolis/St. Paul Chapter of ASG came together to sew for the benefit of others.  On October 23, 2010, ASG members and non-members gathered to sew U.S. Troops Drawstring Bags for our military.  These are bags that hold a gallon size zip-loc bag with a drawstring at the top.  The bags are used by the military for personal use and some of them are passed on to the children in Iraq. 

The volunteers cut fabric, marked fabric, sewed seams, pressed seams, and then inserted the drawstring and the plastic bag.  More than 30 bags were made during this session. 

The Minneapolis St. Paul ASG Chapter now has over 700 drawstring bags that will be sent to help our military personnel overseas.   

Hancock Fabrics in Woodbury was the host for this event where we set up three tables in the middle of the store and in the classroom.  Many customers stopped to ask about our projects and about ASG.  The Make A Difference Day is a biennial event with ASG, and Hancock Fabrics and their employees were very gracious hosts.