Handmade Dresses Fill Civic Club; Destined for Children in Central America

WILDWOOD ─ “What could be more fun than making a little girl’s dress?” 
That question, posed by Pat Long of the Wildwood Civic Club, captured only a part of the joy displayed in the front hall of the historic clubhouse.
As evening fell April 6, members and friends gathered at the J. Thompson Baker House to discuss community affairs and to admire the handiwork of six women.
Over 120 dresses, completely handmade, hung from the staircase balustrade, ready for their journey to the Dominican Republic.
Explained by member Pat Long, the dresses are a contribution to the “Dress a Girl Around the World” program, an international endeavor to clothe girls throughout the world.
According to the program’s brochure, “‘Dress a Girl’ has thousands of sewers across the U.S., Canada, Australia, the UK, Sweden, the Philippines and many other countries around the world.”
Founder Rachel Eggnum Cinader began the program after seeing the plight of children in Uganda, Africa. Captured and forced into the sex trade, young girls are taken from their villages and families.
However, if a girl wears a dress, she is less likely to be abducted by sex-traffickers. Hope 4 Kids International hosts mission trips to distribute the dresses in Uganda, India, Guatemala, the Philippines, Romania, and other nations.
“Our goal is to restore a sense of worth to vulnerable girls suffering from extreme poverty. Some are abused, used as slaves, or outcasts who may feel forgotten by God and feel invisible to those around them,” the brochure reads. The women of the Wildwood Civic Club answered the call and created dresses, many with special touches.
Long showed her “hallmark” in the dresses she made: a small hand sewed into the fabric and a rose-shaped button. According to Long, the next “group” of dresses will be delivered to girls in Haiti.
The present collection will soon be delivered to St. Joseph Church for distribution to the Dominican Republic.
Pat Cook, co-president, also commented on “the worthwhile cause” and could not speak of the “horrible, horrible people” who abuse young women across the world. Though the club’s membership is only 31, its members continue to serve Wildwood and beyond.
“I think it (sewing) went very well,” Long reflected on the project. “We didn’t have a lot of sewers, but we had good sewers.” Creating change, even with limited resources, begins with small steps.