Learning Through Giving

There's something special about seeing kids do nice things for others, and at this time of the year, it's not something Bethany residents have to search hard to find. Last week more than 100 middle school students made no-sew blankets to donate to cancer patients at Yale-New Haven Hospital's Pediatric Oncology Program.

The project was overseen by Bethany Middle School literacy teacher Tammy Saisa, who had already started on the project, when she was asked by the elementary school to help them make quilts, too. Bethany Elementary School contacted Saisa because she runs the quilting club at the middle school. They're making another 80 quilts.

To incorporate literacy into the middle school project, Saisa turned the story, The Quilt Maker's Gift, into a photo book presentation and showed it on the big screen in the library Thursday afternoon while students were making their quilts.

"The story is about a lady who lives in the hills and makes quilts for poor or ill people," Saisa says. "A man wants a quilt and she won't let him have it. He wants to buy it, but she won't take money for the quilt. She told him to do good things for people and she'd give him a quilt. By the end of the story, he's donating everything he's got and he got himself a quilt."

Saisa was surprised when over 100 students signed up to make quilts.

"They spent two days researching inspirational quotes and they attached little cards with ribbon to the quilt. It added a personal touch," Saisa says.

The goal was to have all students in all four enrichment classes create quilts along with notes of inspiration for the patients of the center.

"The community outreach activity displays the importance of giving during the holiday season," she says, adding that she enjoyed watching the children give to others.

She overheard one eight grade boy say to another, 'This really makes me feel so good about myself,' and then one seventh grade boy said to another: 'I think I'm going to ask my mom for a sewing machine for Christmas!'

"It was not a boy I'd expect to hear that from. The boys were talking about hockey right before he said that," Saisa says. "They did such a nice job."

About 80 elementary school students worked on their blankets after school Friday. Saisa's classes made their blankets during the school day.

"At first, I admit, I wondered what I had taken on. It took four shopping carts to get all of the fabric to the counter at Jo-Anne Fabrics and Crafts. I would do it again in a minute," she says.