2 minute read
Great effort in Beerwah for local wildlife
Sewing bee gets hall buzzing
The hall was filled with sewers
When wildlife lovers Bekky Hoge (Landsborough - Love Where We Live) and Debbie Ives (Beerwah CWA) recently teamed up to host a sewing bee to make much-needed kangaroo car carry bags and covers for wildlife rescue baskets they were completely overwhelmed by the support they received.
Bekky said she and Debbie had felt really upset and helpless about the effect of bush fires on wildlife, so she contacted Sunshine Coast Wildlife Rescue Organisation (WILVOS) and discovered there were a number of items their carers really needed.
"QCWA Beerwah generously offered their hall to hst a sewing bee, so all we needed were some enthusiastic cutters, ironers and sewers,” she said.
The response on the day was incredible with women coming from as far away as Brisbane, many carrying sewing machines and arm loads of fabric.
The hall quickly filled up and they had to set up cutting stations outside.
Irene Austin with a kangaroo car carry bag she made
Bekky said the level of determination to help was inspiring. One woman said she didn't "care what I do, just give me a job and I’ll do it. I just want to help".
Women cut pattern pieces, ironed and sewed non-stop for as much as five hours. When morning tea was announced, nobody moved and they had to encourage people to stop working to have a cup of tea and cake.
Several women even asked for patterns to take home so they could sew more items. This request saw two enthusiastic women go and buy paper and cardboard and spend hours tracing takehome patterns.
Bekky reckons by the end of the morning, they were exhausted but also inspired by the community’s heart-warming desire to help.
A cotton cover to keep animals warm and calm in their rescue basket
WILVOS has almost 100 carers on its books so there is a significant demand for the hand-made items.
Given the success of the first WILVOS sewing bee, they plan to host another event in early April.
Currently they are looking at options for a bigger venue to accommodate the incredible number of people in the community who want to be able to help wildlife and their selfless carers.
