There’s a sewing bee that meets each month at Mt. Alverno Center in Warwick, New York and there are soldiers and sailors in far away places that are glad they do.

On the first Tuesday of every month, members of “Women-in-Stitches,” a sewing club from Warwick’s Church of the Nazarene, travel to Mount Alverno Center to join residents for a pleasant evening of conversation, laughter, knitting, quilting, and crocheting. And before each sewing bee they select a needy organization or deserving group that would benefit from their skills.

Mount Alverno Center, a New York State approved adult home with an assisted living program, is part of the Warwick campus of Bon Secours Charity Health System.

In January, for example, the club members and residents gathered at the Mount Alverno activities room to craft wool caps that would fit comfortably under the military helmets worn by servicemen and women in combat zones. Many of the senior residents are experienced in sewing crafts and often share their own techniques with club members.

“This is a meaningful experience. We enjoy doing this and we laugh a lot,” said the group’s leader Cyndy Baldino. “That’s why we call ourselves ‘Women-in-Stitches.’”

Baldino explained that at the end of the evening, the Mount Alverno residents and club members would place their gift wrapped wool caps, cards, and personal notes in boxes for shipment to service men and women serving overseas. The actual delivery is handled by an organization known as “The Ships Project,” which sends handmade hats, slippers, ties, and so forth to soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines deployed throughout the world.

“We are thankful that the members of 'Women-in-Stitches' visit us each month,” said Lisa Fedorka, director of Mount Alverno Center. “Our residents look forward to these evenings and they not only enjoy the fun, laughter, and camaraderie, but they are proud of the contribution they make to society by sewing for charitable organizations and other worthy causes.”