Susan McKinney, A Country Girl At Heart

“It’s Willie Nelson and Waylon Jenning’s fault! Music influenced my move to Texas.”  Susan McKinney was born in Bartesville, Oklahoma, and then moved to Missouri with her parents.  After college, Susan packed up everything in her car and headed to Texas.  She landed in Abilene working with an engineering firm.  Within a few months she met a young man at the firm who had just graduated from Texas A&M.  They married and had two children, Jenny and Jeff, then moved to the Dallas area.  Jenny is now married and lives in Washington DC. Jeff is a Graphic Designer with an advertising firm in downtown Dallas.  Susan isn’t yet a grandmother, but she would love to be! 

Susan has always sewn. She learned by watching her mother and grandmother.  She still has the first quilt she ever made. It is about a foot square, made when she was 4 or 5 while at her grandmother’s house.  At 16, Susan made a full size quilt she still has, although it is in poor condition.  One she made at 19 is still being used on her son’s bed at home.

A few year ago while working part time at the library and at The Old Craft Store (where she still works), Susan saw a volunteer ad and found Quilts For Kids.  She made many quilts for this organization.  She heard about Newborns In Need when Marge Bessire came in to The Old Craft Store to pick up some donated fabric.  When there was no longer a Quilts For Kids representative in the area, she started donating to Newborns In Need. Last year she donated 57 baby quilts and her goal for 2014 is 72!  Susan also brought in four new volunteers from her friendship quilting group.

Wanda Singer, Knitting, Crocheting, and Quilting, OH MY!

Originally from Allentown, Pennsylvania, Wanda Singer and her husband moved to Houston in 1976 after an especially hard winter.  They were ready for warmer weather and have lived in Texas since then, except for five years in California. Wanda taught Special Education for eight years, and then stayed home with her children.  Her “volunteer career” started at this time with school activities, PTO, and Girl Scouts. Her son now lives in Boston. He was in the Navy and is now in the Navy Reserves.  Her daughter started her career as an ICU Nurse.  She is now a Family Medicine Residency Program Coordinator for JPS.

Wanda free motion quilting pillowcase quilts at a Thursday meeting.

As a girl, Wanda’s Grandmother taught her to sew and quilt. Her mother taught her to knit when she was five and she taught herself to crochet as a teenager. About five years ago, Wanda found Newborns In Need. She had knitted about 60 baby hats and wasn't sure where to donate them. She went onto the Lion Brand website Charity Connection and saw information on Newborns In Need. Wanda mailed Marge and the rest is history. Now as a permanent fixture at Newborns, Wanda helps deliver to Parkland and her Chevy Tahoe has become the mobile storage unit. Wanda enjoys her work with Newborns in Need. She said, "It's fun and I feel productive.  I've learned so much about quilting!"

Mara Cook, A Newborn's Newlywed

Mara Cook is a relatively new addition to the Newborns In Need family. Mara was born in the Philippines. She has a degree in Business Administration, Marketing Management. While working in corporate banking, about two years ago, she met Jason Cook while he was in the Philippines on a two week business trip. They communicated via the internet for over a year, then Mara came to the US and she and Jason were married on November 8, 2013.

Even before she was married, her Mother-In-Law, Roberta Cook, invited Mara to Newborns In Need. Unable to work in the US for a few months, they decided this would be a productive use of her time.  Mara did not know how to sew, crochet, or knit.  She started by learning to loom knit hats. Next, she tried piecing together 6.5 inch square quit tops.  Then Mara moved on to batik quit tops, "They asked me if I'd like to work on the batik strips, since then I can't stop!" She works on the quit tops at our Newborns Thursday work meetings and every other week at home.  She and her mother-in-law take turns using Roberta's sewing machine every other week.

Mara and Jason are enjoying married life.  Mara hopes to be able to work in the next few months. The couple has no immediate plans to make Roberta a grandmother, but they do plan to start a family in the future. With her new skills, their children will have beautiful, handmade baby hats and quilts.

Delivery Totals for February 2014

Parkland

Bib  20

Blanket, Afghan  12

Blanket, Fleece  28

Blanket, Quilt  215

Blanket, Receiving  506

Booties  94

Burp Cloth  14

Cloth/Towel Set  2

Diaper Tote, Small  3

Diaper Tote, Large  1

Hat  409

Onesie   170

Pants  3

Shirt  102

Socks, Plain  170

Socks, Fancy  2

Sleeper  1

Sweater  7

Stuffed Toy, Handmade  9

Washcloth  37

Gel Pillow Cases  75

Headband  1

              

Parkland total for month  1,881

Sharing Life

Blanket, Receiving   20

Sharing Life total for month  20

Nexus

Blanket, Receiving   20

Cloth Towel Set  10

Washcloths  15

Large toys  4

Nexus total for month  49

Family Place

Blanket, Receiving   20

Gently used clothing 38

Baby Food 4

Family Place total for month 62

Hope 4 Refugees

Blanket, Fleece   1

Casual Outfit  7

Gown  1

Mittens 1

Socks, plain  6

Hope 4 Refugees total for month 16

GRAND TOTAL FOR FEBRUARY    2028

Delivery Totals for January 2014

Parkland

Bib  7

Blanket, Afghan 23

Blanket, Fleece  17

Blanket, Quilt     58

Blanket, Receiving   414

Booties   51

Bottle, BPA Free   6

Burp Cloth  6

Diaper Tote, Small   1

Diaper Tote, Large   6

Diaper Tote, Handsewn  5

Hat   301

Jacket    2

Mittens 7

Onesie   161

Pacifier or holder  11

Pants     23

Shirt       65

Socks, Plain  130

Sleeper  2

Sweater   7

Stuffed Toy, Small   1

Stuffed Toy, Medium  2

"T" Shirt    6

Toiletry Items 17

Washcloth  14

Accessories  6

Gel Pillow Cases 75

              

Parkland total for the month        1,424

Sharing Life

Blanket, Receiving   18

Hat    8

Mittens 1

Sweater 1

Dental floss     1

toothpaste  9

tooth brushes   15

Gift bags with suckers  17

Sharing Life total for month  70

Nexus

Blanket, Receiving   20

Hat  3

Gift bags with suckers   16

Adult t-shirts  2

Kids purses  5

Nexus total for month 46

Family Place

Booties   4

Diapers (Set of 6)   53

Dress 1

Hat  7

Sippy Cup  4

Sweater 1

Wipes (Pack of 80) 4

Gently Used Clothes 4

Towel, bath  2

Baby bathtub   1

Family Place total for month  81

GRAND TOTAL FOR MONTH  1621

Crafters Make It Work!

Our March 1, 2014 Newborns In Need work meeting was full of surprises.

First, construction in the area caused several volunteers to look for a new route to our meeting site.

Second, we relocated for the day to the foyer of the Webb Chapel Church of Christ.  This occasionally happens when the church gymnasium is not available.  If you ever come to a meeting and we are not in our usual spot, just drive around the church and look for the Newborns In Need banner.

Third, Marge Bessire’s son, daughter-in-law and grandson came to visit our meeting bearing gifts of birthday cakes to celebrate March birthdays.

Be sure to join us next month on April 5^th, 10:00 am - 2:30 pm

at 13425 Webb Chapel Rd., Farmers Branch, TX 75234.

Nancy and Larry Petty, A Giving Combination

Christians with a heart for service, Nancy and Larry Petty have volunteered with Newborns In Need since January of 2000. Nancy has lived in the Dallas area all her life.  In 1956 Larry made his way from Arkansas to Texas.  Nancy and Larry were engaged two weeks after they met and married a few months later. They have had four children.  One child passed away a few years ago. They have a son who is 48; he is severely handicapped and lives with Nancy and Larry. A daughter lives in Mesquite; she is a homemaker and has two children.  Another daughter is a Nurse Practitioner, working in Garland with refugees.

Nancy is a sewer and creates a significant amount of items for Newborns In Need every month, including diaper shirts, blankets, hats, and burial outfits. The couple has connections to several organizations in the area.  In addition to Newborns In Need, they work with Family Place, Nexus, Mission East Dallas, Sharing Life Community Service, and White Rock Center of Hope.  They also work with Hope 4 Refugees, which is the organization where their daughter works.  This group helps refugees from Myanmar (Burma) set up apartment homes in the Dallas area.  As a result of all these connections, Nancy and Larry are able to put gently used items to good use.  If you have anything to donate, they will find a home for it.  You can drop off items at the Saturday Newborns In Need meetings, but please bring them early as the Petty’s usually make their drop off/pick up stop close to 10 am. Larry is the driver for the couple.  He is the “man power” behind all the deliveries.

Thank you so much to Nancy and Larry for all they do for the newborns, children, adults, and families in our community.