In this episode with Melanie Keane, she gives us an insightful chat about how running the sewing groups for refugees has impacted her personally.

In the 18 months after beginning sewing Melanie was asked 'Do I know anyone who can sew...? 2 weeks later she arrived at the refugee centre with 2 old sewing machines and some donated fabric. 

4 months later Melanie had 3 volunteers working with her, 8 fairly decent sewing machines and 15 women in the mixed nationality group. The women were voracious in their making and desperate to sew for their families, repair clothes and just escape from their pitiful circumstances for just a few hours. Families had lived in the oppressive centre for over a year feeling hopeless and depressed. Sewing lifted their spirits, formed new relationships across the different cultures and allowed the women to feel like they were nurturing their families again. 

Each week Melanie needed 25 metres of fabric and so she reached out to the sewing community, whose generosity astounded her. 

She ran the project for 15 months until the centre suddenly closed. In this episode Melanie discusses how this impacted her and how she went on to set up another group for vulnerable women at The Lighthouse in Woking, Surrey.

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Sound with permission by Kaneef on YouTube.

SewOver50 intersects with all communities. SewOver50 where we are so over ageism. 

Our focus is the sewing talent each person shares on social media and providing recognition of their willingness to share their skills whether a beginner or experienced sewist.

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