St. Petersburg, FL. On February 1st, the graduates
of Answered Prayers Project’s Sewn Together
program will commemorate their accomplishments
with a graduation ceremony from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at
the Answered Prayers Project Studio at 400 23rd
Ave. South in St. Petersburg. At the graduation
women will gather with teachers, family, and friends
to celebrate and to display many of the different
sewing projects they have learned during the course.
And the sewing doesn’t end with the class; each
woman will also receive a brand new sewing
machine and a gift card for sewing supplies so they
can continue to use and develop their skills.
The eight graduating women all came to Sewn
Together carrying the weight of challenges and
circumstances that left them with few employment
opportunities, but still holding onto hope for a better
future. The classes teach sewing skills, but the core
of Sewn Together is community building. Every week
after a 3-hour sewing lesson, students and teachers
share a meal and discussions are facilitated around
personal and community development topics.
“One of the best parts of Sewn Together is watching
the transformation of students as they gain
confidence from learning a skill that seemed so
intimidating at first. Women start the program with
absolutely no sewing skills, and at first many are
apprehensive, we hear ‘I can’t do this’ a lot. Then it
turns into ‘look what I made!!!’. And they celebrate
each other’s accomplishments. Those moments are
priceless.” – Maureen Barnash, Answered Prayers
Project Administrator.
Sewn Together is a 16-week workforce readiness
program and social enterprise designed to help
low-income women find community and emotional
support while learning how to sew. Almost all of the
women in the program are in a major life transition of
some kind, they may be immigrants or refugees, they
might be living in a shelter, they may be starting a
new life after escaping an abusive relationship, or
even coming out of jail. The seamstresses that
graduate from the sewing classes will have an
opportunity to work for the Sewn Together social
enterprise making pillows and wine bags which are
sold to provide supplemental income for graduates
and support the cost of classes. Additionally, they will
have the training necessary to secure well-paying
jobs in local industries that employ seamstresses
such as cushion and awning production. Classes are
offered at no cost to participants in Wimauma and St.
Petersburg.
Contact Elizabeth Bunbury, Executive Director, at
elizabeth@answeredprayerscross.org or Courtney
Erickson, Program Manager, at
courtney@answeredprayerscross.org, or call
727-420-3240 for more information.