A hundred women spent Saturday, November 15, giving love and service. Emergency warming sacks were made for the Salvation Army, fire stations and police stations, that will be used to help keep homeless and others warm. Days for Girls presenter, Lorrie Healy, the director of the Rogers AR chapter, guided women in making safe, sustainable, washable, menstrual hygiene kits to be distributed globally. Donna Lewis, from the Tri-County Pregnancy Resource Center in Aurora, thanked the women for the donated baby clothes and for making receiving blankets. Quilts were finished off for the Granby House. Peg Winfrey, Monett Intermediate principal, guided women in making fidget blankets for those with autism or Alzheimer’s. Christmas ornaments were lovingly decorated for foster children caught by the recent floods in Kentucky,
Nice clothing was collected for the HUB Career Closet, for those transitioning into the workforce. Warm clothing and shoes were collected for HUB’s Chase the Chill drive. The HUB is located in the former Monett Cox Hospital building. As its name implies, it will be the gathering place for community resources, such as, the Foster Care Support Group, which presenter, Kathy Haddock, informed the women about, and for which the women made hygiene kit.
The Relief Society, the women’s organization in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sponsored the Monett day of service. Young girls and women gathered from congregations throughout Southwest Missouri to benefit eleven other community organizations.
Molly Bryan, Monett Stake Relief Society President, said of the Women’s Conference, “It can be easy to limit our love and service to others, to our family and close friends. When we strive to expand our circle of influence and rub shoulders with our fellow Christians in the community, it creates an opportunity to become more aware of the needs of others. As we serve, maybe we will realize that our own personal problems are not so big or maybe they are, but by not focusing on them perhaps they can become more manageable. Today’s Woman’s Conference was planned as an opportunity for sisters to come and be rejuvenated and uplifted while filling their own (often empty) cup by reuniting with friends while serving the needs of the community. In addition, the community will be blessed by the many thoughtful and generous donations that were brought by the sisters.
