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Monthly Bags for the girls of Nayamba School

Monthlybags 9047

December 10, 2017

Our first ‘Monthly Bags’ sewing session was a great to success! Thank you to everyone who turned up on the rainy Sunday afternoon in November to help sew, cut out patterns, iron pieces of material or feed us with tea and cake. There was a fantastic atmosphere of cooperation in the hall of Exminster Chapel and, as well as helping out the Nayamba school community, it was a good opportunity to make positive connections with new people in our own community of Exminster. One of our cutters, Sarah, said, “I have lived in Exminster for 13 years but I met lots of new people from the village at the project. I really like the fact that we are helping girls at Nayamba School but at the same time we are getting to know each other better. As Exminster grows, it is good to know that we still have that ‘village feel’.”

 Another Monthly Bags participant, Claire, came along with both her teenage daughter and her mum. “Mum is an amazing sewer but I can just about thread a needle! My daughter and I were kept busy cutting out pattern pieces and I also helped out with basic sewing. It was really nice for all three of us to be involved in the same project.”

Each Nayamba School Monthly Bag comprises of a hand-made, drawstring fabric bag, containing a washable feminine hygiene kit. As soon as a female pupil needs one, we aim to be able to provide her with a monthly bag of her own and, if possible, one for her mother, sisters and aunties too! If you would like to take part in a future session of the Monthly Bags Project, our next get together is at Exminster Chapel on 10th December and then on 14th January. Full instructions are given and sessions run from 3pm – 5pm. A big thank you goes out to councillor Alan Connett for awarding us a community grant which helped buy materials and sewing supplies to get the project started. 

This December, we have some exciting new ways to be involved with Nayamba School. If, like me, you have difficult to buy for friends and relatives on your Christmas list, the Nayamba gift campaign will be very handy.  In exchange for a donation to the school, you will receive a postcard to give to a friend or relative saying that they have fed a child at Nayamba for 6 months, or bought one of the other gifts for the school, for example a science textbook. For more details about gift packages and ways to pay, please visit: nayambaschool.org/give . As always, 100% of donations go directly to Nayamba School, with no administration costs taken off.

And finally, we are really looking forward to getting into the festive spirit at the Nayamba Christmas party on Saturday 16th December at Exminster village hall. Please see the website or our advert in Scene for more details. Have a peaceful, happy Christmas.