Senior Citizens Craft Shop of Wimberley gives back

Since 1978, Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center has empowered survivors of abuse. They provide free and confidential services to women, men and children who are victims of family violence, dating violence, sexual assault and child abuse who live, work or go to school in Hays and Caldwell Counties. HCWC serves approximately 739 victims a month.

These services include 24-hour HELPline, shelter, hospital accompaniment, counseling, resource advocacy, child advocacy, Head Start for children, community education and informational presentations on issues related to family violence, dating violence, sexual assault and child abuse. Services are available in English and Spanish.

Offering all these services free of charge, the center has many needs. Members of the Senior Citizens Craft Shop of Wimberley stepped up to help with some of those needs with 30 members donating funds, material, personal care items and snack items. Personal care bags include shampoo, body wash, deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrushes. Snack bags include a bottle of water, cookies and crackers. Members provide supplies, sew and fill totes. The handmade bags and totes fit into the focus of the shop, as all items in the Craft Shop are handmade or hand embellished by one of the 30 members.

The donation project began in March of 2022. Since then, the shop has donated 250 personal care bags, 203 snack bags and 39 large tote bags. This year alone, shop members have provided 120 personal care totes, 63 snack bags and 62 large totes for clothing.

Seventeen-year member Jan Smith is the guiding force behind this project and members Toni Cook, Jeanne Ann Cope, Jan Fulkerson, Colleen Kaye, Linda Hoppes, Paula Jensen, Marilyn Pierce, Patti Pipkin, Ossy Rehder, Marian Retkowski, Georgia Robinson, Patricia Skiles, Cheri Watkins, Gayle Weir and Robin Wood sew totes, donate fabric and/or help stuff the bags.

Smith delivers these bags to the center monthly. The personal care bags are distributed to residents, and some of the snack bags are given to victims on hospital accompaniments. The staff said the residents, “love having their own products, especially in their own personal bag.”