A Christian charity has distributed almost 4 million dresses to girls living in poverty worldwide through a campaign that coordinates dress-making efforts from various churches and nonprofits.
Dress a Girl Around the World, a program of Hope 4 Women International, has delivered over 3 million locally made dresses for girls since its inception in 2009.
Rachel Eggum Cinader, President of H4WI, shared with The Christian Post that the campaign began after she visited Uganda multiple times and “saw a need for dresses” as many girls were wearing worn-out clothing.
“My sister Joan and I took pillowcases to Uganda and taught the women to make dresses from them using treadle sewing machines,” Cinader explained. “The idea quickly spread, and people from all over wanted to participate in making dresses.”
However, they soon realized that using pillowcases wasn’t the best approach, so they switched to using new cotton or cotton-blend fabrics.
The number of dresses distributed by Dress a Girl is approaching 4 million, as the organization has received dresses from “around the world,” Cinader said.
“Many sewers have said this program gives them a sense of purpose. We’ve seen women who were once depressed now energized, eager to get out of bed and sew for girls in need. They pray over the dresses and for the girls who will receive them,” Cinader continued.
“Dresses are sent with individuals going on mission trips, where they are hand-carried and distributed by those travelers. This allows the teams to share Jesus’ love while doing so.”
In addition to providing clothes, the charity also uses the opportunity to raise awareness about the dangers of human trafficking, educating people about the methods traffickers use to lure young girls.
One church participating in the program is Oro Valley Church of the Nazarene in Oro Valley, Arizona, which began sewing clothes for the charity in 2012.
David Hillis, pastor overseeing missions and evangelism at Oro Valley Church, told CP that the congregation sees Dress a Girl “as a way to empower people in our church to use their gifts to serve on mission.”
“Our church encourages everyone who calls OVCN their home to serve in mission locally or globally each year, and for many, this is a great way to serve from home,” Hillis said.
According to Hillis, members of Oro Valley Church made 138 dresses in their first year working with Dress a Girl, and have since created more than 28,000 dresses.
Each November, the church hosts a “Sew-a-Thon,” where hundreds of volunteers gather to produce more than 1,500 dresses in a single day.
“These dresses are sent from OVCN to dozens of countries, mainly across Latin America, Africa, and Asia. They are distributed by short-term mission teams or through Operation Christmas Child’s shoeboxes,” Hillis added.
“Whenever these dresses are handed out by our teams, we remind the girls that God sees them as princesses in His eyes. These dresses symbolize how much God cherishes them and wants to form a relationship with them. The girls are then connected to local churches for follow-up discipleship.”
Another church involved in the Dress a Girl program is Leduc Alliance Church, a Christian and Missionary Alliance church in Leduc, Alberta, Canada.
Kathy Drader, leader and administrator of the Dress a Girl group at Leduc Alliance, shared with CP that her church got involved in the charity a decade ago when a couple from their church discovered the program at a church in Hawaii.
From October through May or June, the Leduc Alliance group meets weekly for three hours to make dresses, with volunteers also preparing items like flat dolls for the girls.
“We’ve expanded to include other groups and individuals sewing independently. Others who have heard about us now send their dresses for distribution,” Drader explained.
“The dresses have been sent to numerous African countries, including Malawi, Namibia, Egypt, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Botswana, Kenya, and Cameroon, as well as Mexico, Jamaica, India, Brazil, Haiti, Panama, and Guatemala.”
The Leduc Alliance group has sewn or donated over 3,500 dresses for the campaign. Drader emphasized that “the dresses are always taken by someone ministering in Jesus’ name.”
“As a result, the girls are told that Jesus loves them, and that people who love Jesus made the dresses for them,” she added.
“We pray and trust that God will speak to them through this act of kindness.”
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