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49 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, December 9, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend November 29, 2004 Alice Speck of Ruch and other members of the Medford chapter of the American Sewing Guild create hundreds of afghans, lap blankets, stockings, slippers, hats and stuffed animals for seniors and disabled people. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Busy needleworker sews for others By SANNE SPECHT Mail Tribune Santa’s elves are not the only ones working year-around to prepare for the holidays, say members of a community outreach organization. ACCESS Inc. managers Scott Ford and Ellen Gray nominate a local elf who is handy with needle and thread — Alice Speck of Ruch — as this week’s Hometown Hero. Speck is a member of the Medford chapter of the American Sewing Guild. The guild’s volunteers donate hundreds of handmade items to ACCESS’s Senior/Disabled Outreach Program every year. "The amount of work that goes into each item donated is incredible," says Gray in a letter to the Mail Tribune. "Time is the most valuable thing we have to give, and these individuals think nothing of working year-round to produce items for people they may never know." For Speck, sewing is a lifelong love. The retired nurse moved to the area from California in 1993 and joined local sewing and embroidery guilds as a way to continue her hobbies and meet people with similar interests. Advertisement "I joined to get acquainted," says Speck with a laugh. "Things just snowballed." Speck always enjoyed making clothing for herself and family members. If the items she creates these days benefit strangers more than her own family, that is no problem for this 71-year-old. Speck embraces the camaraderie and community benefit that comes with working on sewing guild volunteer projects. "I’ve never been without a sewing machine," says Speck. "Now I just work on everything (the other members) are working on." This year, local guild members made more than 300 afghans, lap blankets, stockings, slippers, hats and stuffed animals for the program. All will be given to senior and disabled clients of ACCESS who would otherwise go without during this holiday season, says Ford, ACCESS’s public relations manager. In addition, guild members made cooling neck scarves for soldiers serving in Iraq. "We made cool-ties for the servicemen," says Speck. "We sent over 150 of them." Speck says the guild has created pieces for other charitable organizations but adopted ACCESS as its main beneficiary because "they seem to do such a good job of getting the things out there." Speck says she hasn’t personally met anyone who has received warmth or comfort from her abilities, but she knows her efforts are appreciated. "(ACCESS) comes back and tells us where everything went," she says. "And they thank us." The Sewing Guild meets every fourth Wednesday for a community sew, says Speck. She urges people who find pleasure in sewing to join her and the other stitchers for an afternoon of needles, threads and good works. "They should pick up an application and come to a meeting. We’re making new neighborhood groups," she says. "And a lot of members do a lot of sewing on their own." Sewing guild expands The American Sewing Guild has about 140 members in Jackson, Josephine and Klamath counties. New neighborhood groups are being organized in Grants Pass, Ashland, Talent and Phoenix. Anyone interested in joining can pick up an application at Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts in Medford, Jeanette's Fabrics in Phoenix or the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce in Jacksonville. Reach reporter Sanne Specht at 776-4497 or e-mail [email protected] . Do you know someone who’s a Hometown Hero? The first to volunteer when a school or a local family needs help, or someone who has risked his personal safety or financial security to help someone else? Submit suggestions to Mail Tribune reporter Sanne Specht via e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at 776-4497. 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