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        CNN

        CNN: “A volunteer ‘sewing squad’ distributed more than 55,000 masks to vulnerable communities in 3 months. They’re not slowing down” (6/30/20)

        Click to read the full article
        Tony Vo2020-07-26T17:16:52-04:00July 22nd, 2020|Press|

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        Look at this mural in Toronto by artist Cindy Scai Look at this mural in Toronto by artist Cindy Scaife!  We'd like to think that Cindy thought of us when painting maskmakers as heroes, replacing our exhaustion from being a shadow FEMA for ten months of this pandemic with a simple smile!
        Our ASS cats, just like our Aunties & Uncles, are Our ASS cats, just like our Aunties & Uncles, are very concerned about the pandemic, and the ways it is affecting our communities. Here is Auntie Chris’ kitty Fred in Hawaii, checking the latest Covid statistics online. 

Stay safe out there!  This pandemic isn't over yet! Wear a mask!
        Each month, select Auntie cats are featured in our Each month, select Auntie cats are featured in our exclusive Auntie Sewing Squad Cat calendar! Overlord wanted to call this the "Pussies of A.S.S." calendar but she got veto'd by the group!

January Cats include, clockwise from upper left: Auntie Angela’s Angel; Auntie Phyllis’ Miss Annie; Auntie Jackie’s Amon; Auntie Camille’s Oscar; 1 unidentified kitty - if you recognize this kitty & can identify the owner/s, please do; Auntie Marianna’s Mowgli; Uncle Daniel’s Rufus; Auntie Lisa K’s Pekoe Chan & Mu Shu Kitty; with Auntie Linda L’s Kona & Hilo in the center. 

Isn’t this a good-looking bunch of kitties?
        Our Auntie Jennifer in Florida is a costumer with Our Auntie Jennifer in Florida is a costumer with Cirque du Soleil.  She hasn't been able to work because of the pandemic but has used her professional skills to sew 7000+ masks and now wool hats and gloves for the people of Navajo Nation!  Thank you Auntie Jennifer!

💥 If you'd like to purchase, knit, or sew gloves, hats, scarves for the folks in the rural areas of the Navajo Nation you can find the addresses and Amazon wishlists here --> http://auntiesewingsquad.com/blog-posts/amazon-wishlists/

Right now, all their wishlists are very underbought, so  any of the addresses would appreciate your donations!
        Do you have 100% cotton fabric you can donate to t Do you have 100% cotton fabric you can donate to the Aunties or our Lakota partners at Rosebud who are starting a sewing group to make masks for their community?

We can get you addresses to send it!  Message us with a picture of the fabric and your willingness to mail!  Please no used, smelly fabrics.  We ideally work with the kind of fabrics that you use for quilting.  We also can forward you addresses for WORKING sewing machines in good condition at Rosebud that will them.

Photo borrowed from the Social Justice Sewing Academy !  Also, we still aren't sick of this #BernieMittens meme
        The Aunties were tickled watching yesterday's Inau The Aunties were tickled watching yesterday's Inauguration and seeing Senator Bernie Sanders wearing knit mittens made by a local school teacher named Jen Ellis. She uses upcycled fleece!  Here is a quote from that seamstress that appeared in Washington Post: 

“When you are a maker of things, when you create things — art or clothes or whatever you make — you never know where they’re going to go. And the fact that these mittens were made with the sewing machine my mother gave me when I was 12 years old and with wool that somebody else had thrown away, and they made it all the way to one of the most historic inaugurations of my lifetime … ” she said, her voice trailing off. “It just delights me.”

As sewing machine soldiers ourselves, we love seeing quilting fabric repurposed for lifesaving masks! 

🧶 Send warm mittens, scarves and cold weather clothes to the most rural areas of Navajo Nation!  You can make the items or buy them.  Addresses and Amazon lists are here--> http://auntiesewingsquad.com/blog-posts/amazon-wishlists/

💥Read the Washington Post Article Here!  https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/01/20/bernie-sanders-mittens-inauguration-parka-coat/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR17-YkrnlHhhCp-VBFbgUzqG9ZnVI4cjzZF83hO6O5wl_vDhewBQ3AFoP8
        The Aunties were interviewed for an ORAL HISTORY A The Aunties were interviewed for an ORAL HISTORY ARCHIVE at California State University, Monterey Bay !  All the interviews were conducted by students of Auntie Chrissy Lau's "Women and Social Change in the U.S" course.

LISTEN AND READ our stories here:  https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/auntiesewing/?fbclid=IwAR1uVGxbTdNM4MtGl_zw3kb0kmHwoRXz8Sc0L1ynIXXg0a25HxOeu-HyNZg
        "It all began in March when I lay sleepless in my "It all began in March when I lay sleepless in my bed staring at the ceiling and wondering who I would never see again because of COVID and plotting how I would fend off Asian-hating strangers at the grocery store who held me personally responsible for the virus. 

Between heart palpitations, I tried to relax by looking at Facebook - because that's what you do to relax during a pandemic.  Look at Facebook as if it's going to relax you.  Of course, it does not, but I did see someone more stressed out than me, and it was Kristina Wong, who was trying to sew dozens of masks those in need on her Hello Kitty sewing machine.  She was freaking out and overwhelmed, so I messaged her and said, 'I, too, have a Hello Kitty sewing machine and a heritage in the garment industry, so let me relieve your burden and help you.'
 
Before I knew it, I was picking up bolts of fabric from her and rooting out fabric, elastic, and other notions from my mother's abandoned sewing room. 

Now a proud member of the Auntie Sewing Squad, I put Hello Kitty to work and sewed masks every free moment that I could find. Hello Kitty sewing machine had never been put to work like this before and I recruited my mother-in-law to help pin, cut thread and iron.  Normally, I'm a playwright and theater/event producer and not a very good seamstress, but very quickly, I became quite competent. 

Over the course of the following weeks, the Squad grew from a tiny, little group of 20 to a massive nationwide force of over 800.  We formed a community and looked to care for one another. 

What I will remember is that I looked to mask sewing as something I could do to help because I had the rudimentary skills to do it.  It kept me busy and sane and allowed me to feel less helpless in this mad world that was spiraling out of control with an administration that had no competency in getting a handle on it.  It gave me a sense of community, and concern for the people in our community who are most vulnerable."

-- OG Auntie Annette
        💥Thanks to our supporters who stepped up to our 💥Thanks to our supporters who stepped up to our call to support Auntie Elizabeth Anne's efforts for the South Pasadena unhoused population!💥

In addition to cold weather gear, PPE and personal hygiene kits, Auntie Elizabeth Anne is now providing hot meals to a group if he’d unhoused neighbors in the park next to her house every Monday. She uses fresh veggies and other items she sources from World Harvest Food Bank and supplements as needed through thrift shopping. We could use help with weekly monetary sponsorship of these meals, local donations of drinks, water, non perishable snacks, wipes and $10 dollar gift certificates for McDonalds or Subway. Our goal is to eventually get everyone connected with the resources that they want and need. In the meantime, we need to keep people warm, dry, fed and protected from COVID.

For more info on supporting this community, email eabagasao@hotmail.com or venmo is @Elizabeth-Bagasao. One Monday Meals sponsorship is $40.
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