A Soft Bed For A Dog's Head

GIRLS DONATE BLANKETS TO POUND

LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER A girls’ sewing group at Prairie Grove United Methodist Church made 25 fleece blankets and donated them to the Prairie Grove Pound. Girls in the sewing class are Aubrey Ault, Kaylee Cooper, Finley Dick, Brinley Dobbs, Sadie Gastineau, Reese Light, Olivia Lingle, Melindah Newman and Samantha Phelan. Their teachers are Dianne Meissinger, Peggy Hatfield, Elizabeth Lingle, Susan Logan and Cathy Stumbaugh. Also pictured are siblings, Nathan Lingle, Emma Lingle and Kinley Ault.
LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER A girls’ sewing group at Prairie Grove United Methodist Church made 25 fleece blankets and donated them to the Prairie Grove Pound. Girls in the sewing class are Aubrey Ault, Kaylee Cooper, Finley Dick, Brinley Dobbs, Sadie Gastineau, Reese Light, Olivia Lingle, Melindah Newman and Samantha Phelan. Their teachers are Dianne Meissinger, Peggy Hatfield, Elizabeth Lingle, Susan Logan and Cathy Stumbaugh. Also pictured are siblings, Nathan Lingle, Emma Lingle and Kinley Ault.

PRAIRIE GROVE -- Cats and dogs at Prairie Grove Pound will have fuzzy, softer beds, thanks to some girls from Prairie Grove United Methodist Church.

Cathy Stumbaugh teaches a girls' sewing class at the church and the students finished a mission project to help the pound.

They made 25 fleece blankets and recently donated them to the city's animal pound.

"This is the nicest thing I can think of for the pound," said Sharon Glover with Friends of Prairie Grove Pound as she accepted the blankets for the animals.

Glover said the fleece blankets will be especially useful for spring and summer months when cats and dogs do not need heavier bedding to stay warm.

"These will be good in our kitty cat room and for smaller dogs," Glover told the girls.

Besides the blankets, the girls used scraps from the fleece material to make kerchiefs to tie around the dogs' necks.

Stumbaugh and other adult volunteers meet with the girls one day a week after school and have helped them learn to sew clothes for themselves and also how to make fabric projects, such as stuffed animals. The girls make items for themselves and to give away to others.

The sewing class is taught through 4-H because most of the girls are members of the local 4-H Club and exhibit their projects at the Washington County Fair each year.

Stumbaugh has taught the sewing class for six years but before that, served 37 years as a counselor with Lincoln High School. She has two sewing classes, one for older students and another one for older girls.

Stumbaugh said she came up with the idea for the animal blankets after someone donated a lot of fleece material to the sewing class. She wanted the girls to learn how to use a serger so instead of tying the material together, a popular method for fleece blankets, the girls used a serger to make the finished product.

"They are becoming very accomplished seamstresses," Stumbaugh said.

Two older girls in the class have participated for a couple of years.

Reese Light said she enjoys learning how to sew her own projects. She's currently working on a stuffed dog.

Her friend, Aubrey Ault, made a dress for her younger sister, Kinley, as a birthday present. Aubrey said the dress has been her favorite project so far.

In addition to the weekly class, Stumbaugh also leads a sewing camp in the summer. Last year, girls made purses and tiered skirts at the camp.

General News on 02/08/2017