Sweet. Few things are as sweet as a little girl in a new dress – designed by loving hands, especially for her. There’s just something about the bright, pure colors; the crisp texture; the whole package.

Multiply that scene. Picture now: 12 girls in 12 dresses. Just so sweet.

There’s a group of ladies at Spring Valley Baptist called the Sewing Sisters. (When I first heard of them last fall, I briefly entertained the idea of taking half a day off from school to go check them out. I wish now that I did!) I’m not really even sure who the members are; but, I would love to have the list. Because this story, Sewing Sisters, is especially for you:

Thursday afternoon, school was out for the day. The girls were doing homework and chatting quietly – all behind their gate. The boys, mind you, were reminding me of boys back home. Guess all their homework was done ‘cause they were shooting hoops, running through their yard, swinging on the swings.

Our group of Spring Valley women and girls were taking several piles of dresses to the girls’ place. Piles of pillowcase dresses. Somehow, these Sewing Sisters had found some of the most fashionable pillowcases available on the market and had transformed bed linens into delightful designer dresses. Hand sewn appliqués, perky bows at the shoulders, dreamy dresses. They had made plenty – I assume for the girls to have their choice of designs and colors in a range of sizes.

You don’t have to speak Spanish to picture what happened next. “Ohhh…” and “Ahhh…” sound just the same in English. Exclamations floated through those windows as the dresses were laid out. The girls’ eyes brightened with excitement. It wasn’t chaos though at all, not quite like you’d expect. The girls helped hold dresses in front of each other and nodded when the sizes and the desired patterns fit. Some sweet things tried on one dress and determined that it was absolutely perfect. They would twirl and tiptoe, float and flit through the home, peeking into other bedrooms at other girls and their chosen pieces.

Some other girls would try on a dress, peek in the mirror, look it closely up and down – and then proceed to try on another dress – almost as if they were shopping. I would have given anything at that moment for a full length mirror.

Then, our wise teenaged Julia brought out a gallon bag full of hair accessories. She had thoughtfully gathered these from her family and friends before the trip in anticipation of this moment. What pleasure the girls had in selecting favorite clips, bands, barrettes and bows to accentuate their new look! Little Sandy just couldn’t put down the band with a yellow duck sporting the top of it! Thank goodness her dress had a touch of yellow! Others had arms and hair-full of decorations. 

With all the flitting and twirling, you’d think it was perfect. Sadly, it was not. Heartbreaking, even at times. I heard a young girl’s voice sigh, “Ugly! I ugly!” I looked over to see Mrs. Debie holding onto a precious girl’s shoulders. The girl was looking down; but, Debie was not. Her eyes were right on that sweet face, whispering encouragement and praise, confidence and poise into those listening ears. Spanish or English, that girl knew she was loved. Special, gifted, made in God’s own image. Who knows what insecurities sweet children face? Memories of abuse, neglect and rape must drum through some of their brains. Thank God Debie was there to rain blessings down on that young girl’s heart. A few others suffered some during those moments. Some covered their faces with their hands. A few even ripped hair bows right out of their hair, after painstakingly pulling those lovely thick tresses up. What we felt would be an easy, fun time turned into sweet moments of crying and affirming, hugging and holding, coaxing and praising, loving and praying!

Finally though, the fun and frolicking from the front porch enabled us all to take deep breaths, wipe our eyes, and head outside. It seems some of the girls who were perfectly content in their beautiful new dresses had learned how to do a runway walk from Mrs. Paula, Mrs. Kelly, Mrs. Maria and others. Our children’s minister, Miss Allyson, was there to click the cameras and keep the show going. How precious to hear shrieks and giggles as the girls worked the runway.

- Photos Courtesy of Maria Owens -

The ruddy, pot-holed road between the Mission House and the children’s homes – many things can typically be found there. Wild horses, wandering cows, children on horseback gathering water for their families, fathers bicycling children to school miles away, workers coming for the harvest, our own orphans welcoming groups of volunteers. But, that day, a dozen elegant young ladies graced the path as they went to the Mission House to share their blessings and beauty with Mrs. Georgia. There again, we clapped and cheered, called and chanted as they walked. And we recalled Mrs. Georgia’s earlier words to us: raving, “Your ladies sewed dresses for each of our girls? No one has ever made individual gifts for each child before!”

So, thanks, Sewing Sisters, for your sweet, priceless gifts. Those girls felt beautiful and loved – maybe for the first time ever. I bet every time they glance at their own special dress, they will warmly feel that love all over again.