 |
| Sharon Zollers |
Sharon has been volunteering almost her whole life. She took a break while she was raising her children, but once they were in school, she started volunteering for hospice, and she hasn’t stopped since. Once she started working full-time and could no longer volunteer with hospice, Sharon became more involved with her church, where many of her current volunteer efforts stem.
Sharon volunteers at her church, the First United Methodist Church in Moorestown, New Jersey, where she is a member of the outreach group; knits and sews for underprivileged children through her church and through WayMakers, Inc.; volunteers for the Salvation Army; helps run the Grounds for Good Coffeehouse; donated dolls wearing hand-sewn dresses to WayMakers and The Arc of Burlington County, and regularly donates platelets to the American Red Cross!
Grounds for Good Coffeehouse is a monthly coffeehouse operated by the First United Methodist Church, which features local artists or musicians, and raises money through the sale of donated baked goods for local charities and nonprofits. The Grounds for Good Coffeehouse has raised money for Seeds of Hope in Camden, local food banks, the Interfaith Hospitality Network, the Arc of Burlington County, and the Joseph Fund.
Also through her church, Sharon became involved with the Mitten Tree, an annual event where the church puts up a tree and church members place mittens, gloves, hats and scarves on it, which are then donated to children in Burlington County, New Jersey.
“I knit all year to prepare for the mitten tree,” said Sharon.
Not only does she knit for the mitten tree, but she joined a group at her local A.C. Moore, where volunteers get together and knit blankets, hats, scarves, and more items that are then donated to children around the world.
In addition to her knitting skills, Sharon sews often, donating the fruits of her labor to a variety of charities, including WayMakers, Inc. and The Arc of Burlington County.
Sharon became involved with the WayMakers after her daughter, a local librarian, donated books to help start a library in Achimota School in Ghana. As her daughter talked with WayMakers representatives, she discovered the children had no toys.
“They had sticks and stones and pretended they were toys,” said Sharon. “So, the outreach group [from First United Methodist] bought dolls, and I sewed dresses and hats for the dolls for Christmas. My husband donated trucks and cars for the boys.”
Sharon has also sewn more than 50 pairs of shorts for WayMakers, and is currently sewing A-line jumpers to send to the children. She has about 30 dresses ready to go, but continues to make more, as long as there is fabric available.
“Most fabric is donated fabric,” explained Sharon. “I collect everyone’s leftover fabric and I make what I can from the pieces. I was very fortunate recently; a lady was cleaning out her parents’ house and she offered me all of the materials she found.”
That haul of fabric was so large it filled Sharon’s trunk, and she’s even placed her bed on risers to allow for extra storage space!
Sharon doesn’t just give of her time, however. She is an extremely active donor for the American Red Cross, donating platelets every chance she gets.
“The process takes two hours. It’s a real time commitment,” said Sharon. “I get very antsy, but I do it because it’s a good thing to do, and I am able to. I got my daughter involved, and now we go together.”
Perhaps Sharon’s busiest time of year, however, is between Thanksgiving and Christmas, when she and her husband volunteer with the Salvation Army, organizing kettle campaigns in three locations. Each day, they set the stations up and go back to collect the buckets and deposit the money. Whenever they can’t find someone to ring, Sharon steps up and covers the two-hour shift.
Grounds for Good Coffeehouse is a monthly coffeehouse operated by the First United Methodist Church, which features local artists or musicians, and raises money through the sale of donated baked goods for local charities and nonprofits. The Grounds for Good Coffeehouse has raised money for Seeds of Hope in Camden, local food banks, the Interfaith Hospitality Network, the Arc of Burlington County, and the Joseph Fund.
Also through her church, Sharon became involved with the Mitten Tree, an annual event where the church puts up a tree and church members place mittens, gloves, hats and scarves on it, which are then donated to children in Burlington County, New Jersey.
“I knit all year to prepare for the mitten tree,” said Sharon.
Not only does she knit for the mitten tree, but she joined a group at her local A.C. Moore, where volunteers get together and knit blankets, hats, scarves, and more items that are then donated to children around the world.
In addition to her knitting skills, Sharon sews often, donating the fruits of her labor to a variety of charities, including WayMakers, Inc. and The Arc of Burlington County.
Sharon became involved with the WayMakers after her daughter, a local librarian, donated books to help start a library in Achimota School in Ghana. As her daughter talked with WayMakers representatives, she discovered the children had no toys.
“They had sticks and stones and pretended they were toys,” said Sharon. “So, the outreach group [from First United Methodist] bought dolls, and I sewed dresses and hats for the dolls for Christmas. My husband donated trucks and cars for the boys.”
Sharon has also sewn more than 50 pairs of shorts for WayMakers, and is currently sewing A-line jumpers to send to the children. She has about 30 dresses ready to go, but continues to make more, as long as there is fabric available.
“Most fabric is donated fabric,” explained Sharon. “I collect everyone’s leftover fabric and I make what I can from the pieces. I was very fortunate recently; a lady was cleaning out her parents’ house and she offered me all of the materials she found.”
That haul of fabric was so large it filled Sharon’s trunk, and she’s even placed her bed on risers to allow for extra storage space!
Sharon doesn’t just give of her time, however. She is an extremely active donor for the American Red Cross, donating platelets every chance she gets.
“The process takes two hours. It’s a real time commitment,” said Sharon. “I get very antsy, but I do it because it’s a good thing to do, and I am able to. I got my daughter involved, and now we go together.”
Perhaps Sharon’s busiest time of year, however, is between Thanksgiving and Christmas, when she and her husband volunteer with the Salvation Army, organizing kettle campaigns in three locations. Each day, they set the stations up and go back to collect the buckets and deposit the money. Whenever they can’t find someone to ring, Sharon steps up and covers the two-hour shift.
“We don’t really plan anything between Thanksgiving and Christmas,” said Sharon. “We’re really busy with the Salvation Army.”
Her work with the Salvation Army is some of the work that makes her most proud.
“Our Salvation Army group is so little. There are just a handful of us, but we work hard to get people from our congregation to sign up and take turns to ring the bell for us,” said Sharon. “It just seems to get better every year with the number of people we have.”
“I hear the things that we are able to do for people, and I know it’s worth it,” she said.
“I hear the things that we are able to do for people, and I know it’s worth it,” she said.
No comments:
Post a Comment