Youth spend day off school to sew some ‘chemo caps’

“So, I went to the Tammy Walker Cancer Center and worked with them to figure out a system to make chemo caps for them,” she said. “My first round I donated about 50 or so; this is my round two of chemo caps.”

After having started the sewing project she thought of a way to expand it, so it wasn’t just her doing the work.

“In 4-H there are four H’s, which stand for head, heart, hands, and health,” she said. “Then I started the Fifth H, which is for hope.”

The Fifth H is a SPIN club through the Dickinson County 4-H. SPIN clubs open membership to anyone, regardless if they are in 4-H or not.

“My siblings started a SPIN club, but theirs focuses on beekeeping — I am a seamstress, so I started one for sewing,” she said. 

She started the club in August 2016 with the goal of sewing mastectomy bags to help women who were in recovery from their surgery. 

After making and delivering those, she decided to go back to sewing the caps again for a while. Her goal is to deliver another 50 caps in the next few months.

She said for those who are first learning how to make them it can take about 20 to 30 minutes to make one, from start to finish. She can make one in about 15 to 20 minutes now. 

Anguiano had no thought about sleeping late

Among those who joined her Monday morning was Megan Anguiano, who brushed off the idea of sleeping in late.

“I knew I would have to wake up eventually,” she said. 

She recalled helping make caps several years ago with Fiona and enjoyed it then. Since she likes sewing, helping out was an easy decision to make. Early on in the morning she was helping sew circles together, which wasn’t always turning out as easy as usual because her sewing machine vibrated so much it shook the whole table.

She joked about having fun with the project because she simply likes “going in circles.” But she also said she finds sewing to be a soothing activity and, if she can help others by doing something like this, she’s going to do it.

Sewing Passion,

accomplishment

Fiona’s interest in sewing came from the fair — every year she would see the beautifully crafted quilts on display and was amazed at the work.

“I thought it was so cool how they just took fabric and made these beautiful works of art,” she said. 

Her parents didn’t sew and her grandparents who did live too far away. Her mother, however, had a co-worker, Gale Brock, who was willing to teach her.

“I started out doing more on the clothing side, but then I realized quilting is what I really love. Quilting is my passion, but quilting is harder to do for charity.”

As much as she loves sewing, she also has a sense of satisfaction when she can use her skill and talent to help someone else.

“I love the feeling I get when I give a quilt or any form of fabric thing,” she said. “It is a very accomplished feeling.”

In addition to the projects to help cancer patients, Fiona has sewn dresses for children in Africa and comfort bears for children who have to go to the hospital.

Another benefit

There is another side benefit to the Fifth H projects, she said.

In 4-H, members look for ways to show leadership and citizenship in the projects they do, but it’s not always too easy. At the end of the 4-H year, when members put together their record books, they like to show leadership and citizenship so they can earn higher scores when the books are judged.