Meet two Sew Powerful Quilt Show managers who give us the inside scoop as they prepare for their roles as Show Managers. Betty Johnson will oversee the Sew Powerful booth at Quiltcon Phoenix and Jan Paul leads the way at AQS Branson. Betty and Jan share how they have prepared, the materials and guidance they have received, and why they have taken on these roles. They also talk about the Quilt Shows themselves and the activities you and your families can enjoy if you make these shows your destination. Betty and Jan offer encouragement to anyone thinking of taking on this fun job.
EPISODE 90
Quilt Show Inside Scoop with Show Managers Betty Johnson and Jan Paul
IN THIS EPISODE
TOPICS
QuiltCon Phoenix, booth, quilt shows, AQS Branson, Branson attractions, sewing, volunteers, purse makers, Phoenix, Jason, Cinnamon, show manager, fun, planning, supporting materials, training materials, NEC Birmingham England
RESOURCES
We are Sew Powerful, How a Global Community of Seamstresses Is Changing Zambia One Girl at A Time, 2nd edition. By Jason G. Miles and Cinnamon, © 2016 & 2020 Jason G. Miles and Cinnamon, all rights reserved.
Quiltcon 2022, Phoenix, AZ: https://www.quiltcon.com
AQS Branson: https://www.americanquilter.com/quiltweek/event/homepage
Branson attractions: https://www.explorebranson.com/things-to-do
ABOUT THE SEW POWERFUL PODCAST
The Sew Powerful Podcast shines a light on the people behind the mission to keep girls in school and create purposeful products in Zambia. Join us every week for a new 30-minute episode to meet new people, hear inspiring stories, and learn how you can join us in this global movement. Whether you sew or not, make purses or not, you will find something to enjoy in every episode. Listen today.
SPEAKERS
Host: Jan Cancila
Guest: Betty Johnson, Jan Paul
TRANSCRIPT
Jan Cancila, host 00:04
Welcome to the Sew Powerful podcast. This is your host, Jan Cancila. You know the sound of my sewing machine means it's time for another episode. So let's get started.
Jan Cancila 00:20
Hello Sew Powerful podcast listeners, I have a double surprise for you today, we are going to be speaking with Betty Johnson and Jan Paul. You're going to get two for the price of one. Betty is the show manager for the upcoming Quiltcon Phoenix show in February and we're going to talk to her about that one. And Jan Paul is the show manager for AQS Branson that's going to happen during many people's spring break in March. So, we have two quilt shows coming up. We haven't been to quilt shows in a long time and Sew Powerful is so excited to be back. So let's start talking about quilt shows. And you're going to be really enticed to want to attend. So here we go. Betty and Jan, how are you?
Betty Johnson, guest 01:09
Doing well, thank you.
Jan Paul, guest 01:11
Doing well. A lot of snow here so I can stay inside and sew. Yeah, make purses.
Jan Cancila 01:18
All right, excellent. Well, let me start off with you, Betty. You are the show manager for Quiltcon Phoenix. Tell us the dates and a little bit about the location of where the show is so people can find it.
Betty Johnson 01:32
Okay. Well, our Quiltcon Phoenix is at the Phoenix Convention Center right in the heart of downtown Phoenix between 4th and 5th Streets, just north of Washington. Lots of good parking around there. We're going to be in the North building. And I really would love to see everybody come on over and stop by booth number 641. We're going to be in the lower level of the North Building. I think registration is open still for anybody who'd like to attend, going on to the website, which is Quiltcon.com. Very easy. And I think the registrations about 12 bucks. We are going to be open between Thursday, which is February 17th, and Sunday, which is February 20th. Even though some of us volunteers have a great opportunity to set up on Wednesday. So, I'd really like to encourage anybody in the Phoenix area during February 17th to 20th to stop by the booth, and look at how beautifully displayed we have 106 purses. And let me tell you the special thing about our booth. We've got Jason and Cinnamon; they're coming, and you get to meet and greet with them. And I think that's just a really big plus for our first show coming back from last couple years of COVID.
Jan Cancila 02:45
Okay, all right. I'm going to ask you more about your show, but that's a great teaser for us. Jan Paul is the show manager for AQS in Branson. Give us the lowdown on your show, Jan.
Jan Paul 02:58
Actually, this will be the very first ever AQS show in Branson. They were originally planning to do it in 2020, and then COVID. So, when we're finally able to get back to having shows they are having this one, and it's going to be at the Hilton Convention Center at Branson Landing, which is a area that's kind of the old downtown part of Branson. And there is a parking garage so there should be plenty of parking and not much trouble parking. There are one day tickets that are going to be $12 for AQS members, $15 for nonmembers all the way up to the multi day ticket that would last all the way from Wednesday until Saturday. And as you mentioned the show is in March, March 23rd through the 26th. The multi day tickets run $28 for members to $35 for nonmembers so it's not a very expensive show to go see. And I think it'll be a lot of fun. It's gonna be like I said the very first time they've ever had one. So
Jan Cancila 04:12
And we're talking about Branson, Missouri which is a destination city. If people come with their families because it is spring break, what kind of attractions might they find in Branson?
Jan Paul 04:24
Branson has a lot of family friendly attractions. There is a huge theme park called Silver Dollar City that is sort of a 1800s kind of theme of old timey stuff. That's a lot of fun. They have rides, they have food, they have all kinds of shows going on inside the park. So that's a fun place to go. They have music shows. Dolly Parton has a huge theater there. I can't remember all the theaters but if you Google 'Branson', there are tons of things to do. One of the neatest things that they have is they've just opened a brand-new aquarium that is amazing, which would be a fun activity to go to. But Branson's got little small amusement parks for kids. There's a big lake for fishing and boating. And one of the attractions is called Branson Belle where you can go out for a show on an old riverboat and have dinner. So, a lot, a lot of things to do. It's a touristy destination, kind of fun place. So, there's lots to do for everybody.
Jan Cancila 05:35
Yeah, something for everyone. That sounds like a lot of fun and that the weather should be a little nicer six weeks from now.
Jan Paul 05:42
Yes.
Jan Cancila 05:43
And of course, Phoenix in February. That's a wonderful destination, isn't it, Betty?
Betty Johnson 05:48
Ideal. You're looking at temperatures already so that I know what to expect down the road here two weeks. And we're looking at highs in the upper 70s, lower 80s. It's gonna be nice, lows, you know, in the 60s. Beautiful time of year to come to Phoenix. You don't want to wait till July to do that. Come in February.
Jan Cancila 06:06
Yeah, absolutely. Well, now both of you are show managers. And I know that you're working on being prepared for the show, can you give us sort of the high-level view of what preparing for a show is all about? Betty let's start with you.
Betty Johnson 06:22
Well, preparing for the show has many layers to it that I'm learning. This is my first show. So I've appreciated all the materials that others have put together, checklists and reminders and booth layouts and those kinds of things. But in addition to those kind of administrative or logistical things, we've got to make sure we've got enough volunteers because we'd like to have two people in the booth, at least at all times. And so, I've been able to find six, seven different volunteers, in addition to Jason and Cinnamon, to come join us at the booth. And these are people who are available through the Facebook group who are purse sewers. So, they are already knowledgeable about Sew Powerful, and about purse making. But there's also then the training component, once we get those volunteers in place. Got to get them ready to go as well. So, logistics are the stuff, the display and the people. And those come the big picture of things that I'm working on right now to finish up.
Jan Cancila 07:19
Okay, and your show is about two weeks away
Betty Johnson 07:22
Just a little bit less. Actually, the counter on the website at Quiltcom.com is 12 days and two hours. So that's what they're counting ways.
Jan Cancila 07:31
And when this airs, it's going to be you know,
Betty Johnson 07:34
even fewer days,
Jan Cancila 07:36
5 days and counting. And Jan Paul, can you talk a little bit about how you're preparing for the show?
Jan Paul 07:43
Well, first I want to say after hearing what the weather's gonna be like where Betty is, I may come help just to get out of here.
Betty Johnson 07:52
Well, I'll find you space, we can always use a great purse maker at Phoenix Quiltcon.
Jan Paul 07:58
I am so impressed with the materials. They have been so helpful in planning the quilt show. I did the Paducah Quilt Show in 2019, before the checklists and all that kind of stuff. And it was a little stressful trying to think of all the little details that needed to be done. And this has made it so much easier. There is a Show Managers Handbook, there are lists of everything that we need and and you have even put links for the places that we can order them if we need them. It has been just a ton easier for me doing this show. And of course, I had a practice run on a show that got canceled due to COVID last fall. So that that also was I went through all the planning stages, and but we didn't do the show. So that was helpful.
Jan Cancila 08:57
That that was your dress rehearsal.
Jan Paul 08:59
That was my dress rehearsal. Like Betty, there's, you know, of course, all the things to do as far as getting the equipment that's going to be in the booth. That's really just a matter of gathering things together. It's getting the volunteers. That is the big thing. Oh, and Cinnamon and Jason are coming to our show too, I didn't say that. Yeah. Yeah. So, if you can't go to Phoenix, come to Branson if you're closer to Branson, and you'll get to meet them there. And I'm so excited to get to work with him again at a quilt show. I also have ladies from my chapter that are interested in coming and I have told my sister that she is now going to repay me for all the sewing and hemming and mending that I have done for her, her whole life and she has to come and help in the booths too. So, she lives about an hour south of Branson, so she's gonna have to come, come help out.
Jan Cancila 09:57
Oh, that's excellent. So So, Jan Paul, if I understand, you're looking for people for volunteers to work in the booth, is that right?
Jan Paul 10:05
That is correct. People who can come and work in the booth either for one day or multiple days, you know, whatever they would like to do. And as we talked about earlier, it's a great place to come and bring your family. And you could work in the booth, if you want to come and volunteer in the booth, while your family's out doing another things. And then in the evenings, there's things for families to do together. So that might be something to think about as well. If you're having to make you know, a little bit of a drive to get there. There is stuff to do.
Jan Cancila 10:40
And Jan, I saw that you put a post on Facebook in the Purse Project Group, asking for volunteers. So, is that the best way to have people respond to that post to get in touch with you about volunteering?
Jan Paul 10:52
That is. They can private message me through Facebook through the Facebook group, if they want to do that. Yeah.
Jan Cancila 10:59
Okay. That's great. And and Betty, what about you? Now you sound like your schedule is pretty complete on volunteers at this point, is that right?
11:07
I'm very fortunate, Jan, you forwarded me some folks that live in the Phoenix area. And I don't think everybody knows, I don't live in Phoenix. I live about two hours north of Phoenix. So, Jan was able to help me scout out some folks in the Scottsdale-Phoenix area to reach out to and we got enough folks, which was really, really heartwarming that that was not, you know, a stumbling block for us. Something that I'd like to share though, too, with planning this convention and hosting the booth being the show manager, is all the stuff we're going to have available to folks that stop by the booth. So that's why I really encourage people to stop by because you're going to be able to bring your already sewn purses. If you're a purse maker in the area, please come to the conference, convention and stop by and bring your purses. We'll have 106 of our purses already on display. But we'll be accepting donations of persons. We'll also accept donations of cash of course. We'll have some things to give to folks to do that, like our We Are Sew Powerful book; we'll have the pattern booklet, which is printed and many, many pages available to those that would like to make a donation. We'll have little gift packs of ribbons and fat quarters and strapping. So, we're going to have stuff to give to anybody who'd like to stop by and make a financial donation at our booth. So, in addition to sharing the information, we can have them look and see see the purses and see how they're made, and get the instructions if they'd like to do that.
Jan Paul 12:39
Yes, and that's a really cool thing that draws people in is seeing the little fabric packs, the ribbon packs, the strapping packs that we have displayed are cute. They're really cute. We hope you'll use them to make a purse, but you could use them for something else too. Yeah. And with a donation you do get those so that that is a cool thing. I'm glad you mentioned that.
Jan Cancila 13:03
Now, I know these quilt shows typically have some big-name people that are either speakers and or trainers. Betty, who do you expect to see at Quiltcon Phoenix?
Betty Johnson 13:15
Well, and let me share that Quiltcon Phoenix is hosted by the Modern Quilt Guild. And they are at least national if not more than just nationally recognized; over 16,000 members of that quilt guild, including my favorite cousin, Donna Moscinski, who's in Chicago. She has worked with the Chicago Quilt Guild for a long time. This organization supports and encourages the growth and development of modern quilting. So, I think that's a twist to regular quilting. And they do this through art, education, and community. So, their featured speaker and this young lady, she looks young lady to me on the on the website. She's got an exhibit of her quilts. Her name is Latifah Saafir. And Latifah happens to be one of the co-founders of the Modern Quilt Guild back in 2009 in Los Angeles. So, if you come to the show, you'll be able to see her; she's a keynote speaker. She has an exhibit of her quilts, and she is a co-founder of the Guild itself.
Jan Cancila 14:14
And Jan Paul who can we expect to see in Branson?
Jan Paul 14:18
There are several instructors that will be there, but probably the one that most people would know is Eleanor Burns. She had a television program for several years and she is going to be one of the main instructors, along with several others. And if you would like to find out who all the instructors are, there's a website that is AmericanQuilter.com. If you go to that website, you can click on Quiltweek and then the Branson show and actually any of the others and see who the instructors are and what the schedule is. So, there might be somebody that you really want to learn from that you can find that's going to be there.
Betty Johnson 15:02
And Jan can I share with Jan, Jan Paul, (Jan and Jan; Jan squared here) that for Phoenix, our classes closed a couple of months ago. They filled up very quickly. So, I'm guessing that probably the classes may still be open for the Branson show. So, if you're looking for that experience of sitting in a classroom and learning, now's the time for the Branson show for the March, and if there are any future programs coming up, you know, two, three months ahead to get on the class list is a good time to do that.
Jan Cancila 15:34
Instruction is one of the activities that the quilt show. But there will be a display of hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of beautifully made quilts, and they will have been prejudged. And so, you can walk around and see who has the blue ribbon quilt, and honestly, they're just amazing. And then there's a big vendor section. And I don't think we have our booth number yet for Branson, do we?
Jan Paul 16:02
Yes, yes, we do. We are booth number 1315. [NOTE: The Branson Booth number has been changed since this was recorded. The new booth number is 1000.]
Jan Cancila 16:06
Okay, and that tells you something of how many vendor booths there are. And, you know, it's just amazing to walk through there and see all the vendors and then of course, stop at the Sew Powerful booth so that you can meet Jason and Cinnamon, drop off the purses that you've already made and save yourself the postage, make a donation and pick up some of the great merch that is going to be there in the booth. You know, I have talked to a lot of people who have found out about Sew Powerful through our booth. And one organization in particular, one of their members was just strolling through and somebody sort of almost, you know, you reach out and you hand them a flyer and I think she maybe reluctantly took it. She was very interested. But then she said she went back to her hotel room that night, and she was going through her bag of goodies, sorting things out of, you know, keep are save. And then she started reading the Sew Powerful flyer. And it dawned on her what a great organization it was. She talked about it at dinner with the other people from her group, brought them all back to our booth the following day. And now they've done several service projects for us. So you never, never know who casually walks by and what it might turn into. And so, I think that's really an exciting thing. So,
Jan Paul 17:34
Yes, I had that experience in Paducah, at the quilt show there with a lady just took a flyer was a little interested. She came back the next day with a bunch of her sorority sisters. It was Delta Sigma Theta, which is a national sorority, and they were just they were beside themselves. They were so excited. And they planned to do a service project. They were so excited and wanting to share the information and you just don't know, I mean, the way I look at it is, you know, we're just planting the seed and God's gonna take that seed and the people who need to know about it are gonna know about it and do something with it. And we just, that's all we do is plant the seed in their mind of making a purse and supporting this ministry. So yeah, it's cool.
Jan Cancila 18:25
I know. And so many relationships have developed because of that personal and Jason and Cinnamon's relationship with Baby Lock was initiated at a quilt show. And so, if you are in the booth, keep your eyes and ears open for opportunities. There was a big fabric donation that happened because of a relationship there as well. So, like Jan says, we're planting seeds, and you're never sure when the harvest is really going to come in. And we just hope that it's a long-term thing. Well, I mean, this sounds like a it sounds like so much fun to attend the quilt shows. But it's it also sounds like it's fun to work in the booth. Jan Paul, you've done that.
Jan Paul 19:11
Yeah,
Jan Cancila 19:11
Several times. Tell us what that's like to be in the booth. I mean, what if you're shy? I mean, you know, if I'm shy, am I going to feel comfortable talking to complete strangers?
Jan Paul 19:21
Well, you know, not having a shy bone in my body that's hard to speak on. But yeah, you have a great time, especially in Paducah, you know, with several ladies. And they told me at the time that they, you know, were a little apprehensive about it, because they weren't the kind of people who put themselves out there. They were a little shy. And they did great. But you know, by the time it was over, they they were just old hands at it. And I think it's because you're not talking about yourself. You know, you're talking about Sew Powerful and the ministry and people are interested. I mean I was surprised most people were very interested and engaged when we talked to them and handed them a flyer and, you know, had questions wanted to know a little bit more, um, some of them said, Well, I don't really have time for that right now. But I'll keep this card and, you know, maybe share it with my quilt guild, or my sewing club, or my church group, or whatever. So, yeah, it's not that it's not that scary once you get started.
Jan Cancila 20:29
And Betty, you said something about training for the booth workers. What do you have?
Betty Johnson 20:33
Yeah, a lot of great information for those of us kind of running the booth. And one of those items is a training manual for the volunteers with some different opening statements or questions that we can ask people walking by the booth. Something else though, that we've done with Sew Powerful I'll harken back to last year was our Speak Up for Sew Powerful. So anybody who has any inkling or interest in maybe hosting a booth or running a booth for Sew Powerful at an upcoming Quiltcon in their area, I would recommend looking at those videos and maybe practicing some of your elevator speeches or one minute speeches, because that perfectly aligns with what we're going to be doing in the booth for four days coming for me in February and Jan, for you in March, perfectly aligns. And I feel very, very prepared now that I was participated in that Speak up for Sew Powerful, but also with the training information, I'm prepared to give that out to my volunteers ahead of time, so they can feel comfortable. What's what's fun, too. And, Jan, I'm going to digress just a bit. We host our welcome Meet and Greets twice a month with Sew Powerful on Zoom meetings. And I get to be on every one of those. And I get to hear Jason and Cinnamon talk about the history of Sew Powerful. Listening to it multiple times reinforces in me the knowledge, the facts, the information about Sew Powerful, but I always learn something new in each one of those Zoom meetings. So, I'd like to recommend to folks, maybe you participated in a welcome zoom, maybe you haven't. But please do in the future, because you're going to learn so much more that will pay off at a future convention that maybe you'll participate in or run.
Jan Paul 22:12
That is such a good idea. And I really like what you said about how if you do want to be a show manager, there is information for you to give your volunteers. So, it's not like you're just, you know, left there to come up with something on your own. It is all laid out for you exactly what to tell your volunteers to say, like you said, there's a little printed out elevator pitch, one minute pitch to give to people who are coming by if you can't think of the words to say yourself, you've got it right there. So yeah, thanks for bringing that up. That was good.
Betty Johnson 22:51
Something something that Jason and I did and with Sue Kirby's help is we've, you know, had weekly meetings leading up to the February convention. We've used lists, and Jason and I divvied it up. So, I have my list of things to get things to bring. And he has his list, because we had the big list ready to go. It was a divvy up, not kind of recreate the wheel situation. So even down to safety pins, or a step ladder, those kinds of things are on the list. So, I knew just pack them up, make sure I've got them. And Jason's got the fliers and Jason's got the booklets and Jason's got, you know, other things on his list. Between us everything is covered. And I feel like even my first aid kit, I'm bringing a first aid kit, who would have thought that? Well, it's on the list. So now I didn't have to worry about creating that list. So very easy for somebody to step in the role of show manager. So that then what you're doing is following a script following the protocol following the checklist, and you feel very prepared about it.
Jan Paul 23:54
Exactly. And I would really encourage anyone who lives in an area where there is a big quilt show, to think about taking on the role of show manager. It is not as overwhelming as you might think it would be. It is all planned out step by step. And it is one of the most rewarding things that I've ever done. It's a lot of fun. You meet fun people. And it's really, it's great. I mean, I can't say enough about how fun it is. I've met so many people at Quilt shows that I worked with in the booth that I see their names in the Facebook group. And of course, I've worked at the Houston Quilt Show, the very first one I ever did in 2018. And I met Jan C and she sat beside me at the donor dinner, and I met Cinnamon and Jason and I met Shirley Utz and you know that that is very special to me right now. Pat Quigley. I met Leslie Unruh. She came and stayed with me was my roommate when I did the Paducah show. So, I mean, it's just it's like, I don't know. It's kind of like we're a little sorority of purse makers here. And it's fun to get to be together at Quilt shows and learn more about each other. And also, to do what we love together with is talking about Sew Powerful and the purses and the girls and talking about my girls.
Betty Johnson 25:24
Question, is there going to be a show in Paducah this Spring?
Jan Paul 25:28
There is going to be a show at Paducah. I haven't heard yet whether we're going to be there or not.
Jan Cancila 25:33
Our plan right now is to do the show in Phoenix, the show in Branson. And then in late July, there's a show in Birmingham, England, the NEC Show that we plan to participate in. And really, we're using Phoenix and Branson as sort of a bellwether to see what participation is like, how difficult is it to get volunteers, is the attendance good, etc. And, you know, there aren't as many shows in the spring and summer. Fall is really the quilt show bonanza if you will. And so later after Branson, we're going to be making some decisions about what future shows we would like to attend.
Betty Johnson 26:18
Where, Jan, on the website, could someone go to look that up to see, let's say in April to see what shows we might be planning to participate in in the fall?
Jan Cancila 26:29
When we do these quilt shows, we put out on our Volunteer Opportunities page, we put out a little job description for a booth worker, and for a show manager. And we do a show by show. So right now, we don't have any of those out there because we're sort of still in the evaluation phase. But as soon as we decide what shows we want to participate in for the rest of the year, you can go to the Sew Powerful website and look under Serve With Us and then Volunteer Opportunities. And then we'll have little job descriptions where you can apply to be the show manager or one of the booths workers in those shows. So
Jan Cancila 27:09
And I you know; I did want to say something about the the documentation that we have. You know, I'm hoping that this is used as a guideline. We don't want to stifle anyone's creativity. And you know, a booth layout on paper may look fantastic. And you may get to the venue, and it may look nothing like what you expected it to look like. So, there's certainly room for creativity. And all of those things are in there as guidelines to help you especially if you haven't done it before. But on the other hand, we want to present a consistent look. If somebody went to the Phoenix show in the Branson show, they should be able to recognize our booth for the similar way that it appears and that our message is consistent.
Jan Cancila 27:57
But there is one other observation that I have. When I first started doing shows, and we would talk about girls missing school on their period, this was so surprising to almost everyone. Yeah. And the longer I did shows, and we mentioned that the more people were familiar with that. So, I think Sew Powerful and other organizations have done a good job of educating people about the issue and people are aware that a solution is needed. And they're most appreciative of what Sew Powerful is doing. So, at first it was more of an education. And not everyone is going to know about it for sure. But there was less education about the problem, and more time to talk about how we were offering a solution. So, I thought that was great progress over time that I observed.
Jan Cancila 28:52
So okay, well ladies, as we wrap this up, any advice, I know that you're inviting everyone to come to your booths in your shows. I know that there are more than two dozen people that make purses that live in the Phoenix area. You all know who you are. I hope that you're planning on stopping at booth 641 between February 17th and 20th. Branson is a less populated area but there are certainly people that that go there as a destination or live not too far from there. And so, we hope that you'll plan to visit the AQS Branson show March 23 through 26th. But as we wrap this up, Betty any parting words of wisdom?
Betty Johnson 28:53
Well, I'd like to share that this is just another great opportunity for those of us that volunteer for Sew Powerful to become more engaged and become more knowledgeable about the mission. And the more I learn, and I've only been around the block here for a year and a half, the more I appreciate what God's wisdom is showing through us and through our work with Sew Powerful. It is affecting the girls in Zambia, but more than that, it's affecting us purse makers. You know, Jan mentioned in our Welcome meeting that we had, you know, earlier this week about how those of us who have been retired are looking for a purpose in our lives. This is fulfilling that purpose for me right now in my life, my connection with and my work with Sew Powerful, making purses and volunteering for different roles. Even as a booth participant, a volunteer, it can serve a purpose for you in your life. So that's my advice.
Jan Cancila 30:30
Thank you, Betty. Jan Paul?
Jan Paul 30:33
I have to amen, everything that Betty just said. And that is exactly how I feel about it. I'm retired. I had been actually praying for a year or two for God to show me what did I need to be doing? How did I need to be spending my time? And then I found Sew Powerful. And I really feel like this is what I'm supposed to be doing. And it's meaningful. And as Betty said, it's something that has not only helped girls in Zambia, but it has helped me personally, a lot. I have struggled with depression for a number of years. And this is something that really got me out of myself, and interested in others, and got me interested in what I needed to be doing to serve the Lord instead of, you know, focusing on myself. And so, you never know what part of your life or someone else's life God is going to touch through your service to Him. And I think that, you know, Sew Powerful is just such a gift to me, and to many other women and to our girls, and the women in Zambia. And it's amazing how, as the Bible verse says, God works all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. So that's what I think of what's so powerful.
Jan Cancila 32:10
Well, thank you both. There's nothing else to say. You've both said it all. And thank you so much for your time. We're going to close right here.
Jan Cancila 32:19
If what you've heard today inspires you to want to make a difference, I urge you to explore the Sew Powerful website at www.sewpowerful.org That's SEWPOWERFUL dot ORG. The website has great information about the organization. It's where you can download the free purse patterns, or even make a donation. We hope you will join us again next week when we bring you another Sew Powerful story. Thanks for listening. Now, go out and have a Sew Powerful day.
ABOUT THE HOST
Jan Cancila has been making purses for Sew Powerful since 2014. She serves the organization as Director, Global Volunteerism and as the Region 8 Chapter Manger. She was a public speaking major at Hanover College and holds an MBA from Our Lady of the Lake University. Jan had a 25-year career with The Coca-Cola Company before owning and operating a linen and party rental business in Houston. She is married with two grown sons, a lovely daughter in law and two remarkable granddaughters. Jan’s published work includes more than 100 online articles for Examiner.com. Reach Jan with comments or suggestions at janc@sewpowerful.org