Industrial Sewing Machines Donated for the Red Cross Curtain Bank

The team at Douglas Outdoor and Textile Innovation is thrilled to be able to give back to the community this winter, by donating and installing two second hand industrial sewing machines for the Red Cross Curtain Bank.

The machines will go a long way in helping the team of volunteers who take in donated second hand curtains and repurpose them with new lining ready for Hawkes Bay families. Many rental properties do not come with curtains and especially in the winter, these curtains make a big difference to keeping families warm.  The 19 volunteers sent out about 500 pairs of curtains in May this year, a number which rises over winter. They can service anywhere from 20-40 families depending on what is needed.

The Curtain Bank started a new initiative recently, coordinating donated quilts for babies to go in the box with curtains going to a home with a young one. Bonnie Plested, coordinator of Red Cross Curtain Bank, said of the sewing machine donation:

“Thank you for coordinating the delivery AND setup of the machines. I don’t think I could have managed the ‘one without wheels’, so thank goodness for your two wonderful staff who were fabulous to work with. We are absolutely in love with the pressure foot machine.”

The team at Douglas is thrilled to be able to help out in a little way by supporting this invaluable community initiative. Along with the sewing machines on behalf of the business, some of the Douglas staff also pitched in and supplied a big box of their own surplus curtains from home.

Douglas Innovation use industrial sewing machines to make anything from outdoor shade covers and awnings, to vehicle covers and upholstery repairs. When it was time for the machines to be replaced it was great to be able to donate them to a good cause.