Clubs Support Community Through Service Projects
Barnesville and Union Local community organizations are bringing comfort and joy to children, families and elders this holiday season through charitable projects.
The Women’s Club of Barnesville is currently collecting clean, unwanted wedding dresses to support two projects.
The “Little Angel Gown” project in partnership with the Great Friend Working Cooperatively Club, collects donated dresses that are transformed into burial attire for infants.
“When an infant passes away, parents often have nothing to dress their child in except a simple blanket or shirt, which adds to their overwhelming heartbreak,” the club posted on its Facebook page.
Grieving families receive the donated dresses at no cost with the hopes it provides some relief and comfort.
“The Little Angel Gowns initiative exemplifies a simple act of kindness during the most difficult times,” the post notes.
So far, the club has received 15 dresses for the project. Federation Southwest Ohio President Carol Christy cuts out the patterns and does much of the sewing for the project.
The Women’s Club of Barnesville accepts used wedding dresses for the “Little Angel Gown” project transforming them into burial attire for infants. Photo provided by Women’s Club of Barnesville.
A second project is collecting wedding dresses, three years or newer, that will be donated to support Brides Across America, a “nonprofit dedicated to loving one another through gifted wedding gowns for military personnel and first responders.” The project runs through April 2026 if others would like to donate to the cause.
A third Women’s Club project involves decorating for the holidays at Barnesville Manor. The club’s Health and Wellness Committee members and Manor staff decorated the Community Room, every floor of the building, and the lobby.
The group also provided residents with a two-soup luncheon with dessert sharing homemade stuffed pepper, cabbage roll soup, and delicious cookies.
(Women’s Club of Barnesville Facebook photos)
The Kiwanis Club of Barnesville hosted its Second Christmas Ornament Walk on Dec. 6 to support the “Coats and Shoes for Kids,” project. This project provides coats, shoes, sweatshirts, sweatpants, socks, blankets and other Christmas gifts to local students in need. The club selects a gift for each student based on what the school district shares about each student, such as a doll or a board game, so the gift may differ from student to student.
The majority of the work for the project takes place between Thanksgiving and the first two weeks of December.
“We do it as a way to help support local students and their families who just need a little help to make sure the students have what they need,” vice president Brock Rogers said.
Requests come from elementary, middle and high school teachers who help the club identify information about the students. The students remain anonymous to the club.
The items are distributed a week or two before Christmas to the students’ parents and caregivers through the school system.
“The project lines up well with larger Kiwanis goals to improve the community by improving the lives of the children that live in that community,” Rogers said.
For several years, the Barnesville Rotary Club has supported area elders through the Christmas Gift Bag project. The club assembled gift bags that were delivered to recipients a couple weeks ago.
The club chooses locations in Barnesville based on elderly who may be home bound or not have close family members including the community’s two health care centers, the Walton Retirement home and Barnesville Manor Apartments.
(Photos provided by Barnesville Rotary Club)
The project is funded by a Rotary International matching grant of $2,000 allowing club members to purchase the gifts. Others, though, are handmade or donated.
Items include personal care products, puzzles, books, calendars, a Rotary mug and socks. Club members also include food items such as banana bread, hot chocolate mix, candy and mini loaves.
“We think that the elderly don’t get the same kind of attention that the kids do,” club president Mary Sidwell said, “and that’s understandable, but we think it’s important to support all generations.”
The Union Local Rotary Club continues a long-running Christmas project providing flowers for each resident of the Walton Home and Emerald Pointe in Barnesville. Working with The Barnesville Flower Gardens, 90 vases were delivered and distributed at the two facilities.
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