Dorcas Society marks 40th year

The local Christian Reformed Church’s Dorcas Society marked its 40th anniversary March 2 with the cutting of a cake.
Members would like to share a few things on how they got started and the work they’ve been doing over the years.
It all started in the fall of 1960 when Nell McCulloch (Romyn) volunteered to give sewing lessons and taught the group how to make bias. They so enjoyed those evenings that at their sewing meeting in February, they decided to continue their monthly get-togethers.
On March 2, 1961, they started the first meeting, which became known as the Dorcas Society.
The group decided the goal of the Society would be to reach out to their mission fields. A board was selected, and they decided to meet at the members’ homes. Dues of 25 cents would be collected.
The group started with seven members but that quickly doubled by the end of the year. Members at that time included Grace Wielinga (president), Florence Borger (vice-president), Dini Ewald (secretary), and Winnie Vosteen (treasurer).
Others members included Riek Sieders, Ann Veldhuisen, Hilda Schyversof, Linda Esselink, Gertie Kamerman, Ynske Kaemingh, Alice Wieringa, Boukje Hoogstein, Rita Byma, Nellie De Jong, Tina Kruizenja, Wilma Wielinga, Tina McDiarmid (Romyn), Tina Visser, and Nellie Romyn.
M Kar and Takan hospitals in Nigeria were the first places Dorcas Society gave support. They were in need of bandages made from cotton material so for the first year, the group came to the meetings with old sheets which they ripped into 3×3 and 4×4 squares.
They also made eight rolls of bandages.
After a year, the hospitals requested that Dorcas send them knitted cotton bandages so they knitted long strips of bandages at their meetings for the next few years.
They also sewed diapers and gowns for the hospitals. In later years, they knitted scarves, socks, and mittens for Korean orphanages.
They also collected and boxed goods (used clothes) to send to Korea but as the cost of shipping kept rising, they decided it would be wiser to send them money instead. They also started to do the mending for the Emo hospital twice a year.
They did their first catering in October, 1962 when they served dinner for a Young People’s rally in La Vallee Hall. The proceeds of this was $68, which was sent to M Kar hospital. They also started to serve at weddings for which they charged $10 ($6 for serving and $4 if they had to do dishes).
In 1964, the cost of making a loaf of sandwiches was set at $1.
The ladies used to have suppers in church, with a film afterwards on different mission fields. They served the first of these suppers in October, 1965. The charge $1.25 for adults, 75 cents for children aged six to 12, and 50 cents for those five and under.
Many things have changed since those early years. They don’t knit any more and their prices have gone up, enabling Dorcas to give much more support to different mission causes.
They also support two students in Columbia every year, give the booklet, “The Miracle of Love,” to every mother of a newborn baby, and they give support to Justin and Tammi Hettinga on a yearly basis.
Dorcas Society’s main source of income now comes from catering.
The ladies would like to take this opportunity to thank the congregation for their faithful support and prayers, and also a big thank you to all the ladies and men who are always willing to lend them an extra hand when they need it.
Francine Krikke and Linda Esselink recently were cleaning out a cupboard in the church library when they came across the very first minutes book of the Dorcas Society.