The MET’s sewing team tripled their goal of providing free masks and PPE.

Janet Mabie
Special to Spur Ottawa

Masks will undoubtedly be part of the norm for months to come. By April, when Canada’s chief public health officer recommended cloth masks, the Metropolitan Bible Church’s (The MET) city outreach team recognized the difficulty residents would have accessing masks. Responding to the need, they recruited volunteers, gathered supplies, and formed a team called “The Met Sower”.

“The name came from a play on words,” explains Sandra Tharakan, outreach coordinator at The MET. “We wanted something that referred to our ministry method (sewing projects) and our ministry focus (sowing seeds). The name was birthed from the idea that we are called to sow seeds of faith wherever the Lord has placed us and with whatever gifts He bestowed upon us.”

The vision for the group actually predated COVID. Heather Berghuis, one of the leaders of the Met Sowers, had an idea to start a weekly ministry, partnered with a community house. (Community houses are organizations operated out of a house, offering things like afterschool programming, a food bank, and other support services.) The team would teach basic sewing skills to interested residents, making mittens out of old sweaters, all while creating meaningful relationships.

“God had a plan and He provided another opportunity for us.”

“Our plan was to pilot the project this fall,” Tharakan shares. “We had already begun to collect sewing machines and material and reached out to community houses to see if there was an interest and then, BANG, COVID hit. We put the plan on pause, but God had a plan and He provided another opportunity for us when the need for masks became clear.”

Their goal became to bless organizations that provide essential services to the vulnerable population in Ottawa.

“We began to reach out to organizations which Met city outreach teams already had ongoing relationships with, such as OIM, Restoring Hope, and community houses like Debra Dynes, Banff Community House, and Pinecrest Terrace. We also responded to requests by Respond Ottawa and donated handmade masks and other handmade PPE throughout the city.”

They quickly exceeded their initial goal of making and donating 400 masks. So far, the 20 volunteers have tripled that number!

“I have seen God impact all of us—sowers, admin team, and recipients.”

“Our sowers were so generous to keep sewing to meet the needs and they commented how blessed they were to love our neighbours in this practical way,” says Berghuis. “I have seen God impact all of us—sowers, admin team, and recipients. The thankful feedback from the community house was beautiful to receive. I have been very blessed to be a part of this new little community.”

Berghuis prays that those receiving masks felt thought of, reached out to, and loved during this time when many have felt alone. She hopes the connection with the community houses will also continue in future God-initiated ways and that God’s love will come to mind as people wear their masks.

Tharakan admits that sharing Christ can be challenging while respecting the community partners’ restrictions. “For this reason all of our initiatives are bathed in prayer from the beginning brainstorming sessions to when it has ended. Through prayer we have seen the Lord open doors, soften hearts, and clearly guide us on how He wants us to share the Good News.

“He has placed each one of us where we are for His purpose. [We all need to] keep our eyes open to see opportunities God has set before us to be the hands and feet of Jesus, and share His love for our neighbours.”