Students at Holly Springs and Millbrook high schools were recently given the opportunity to help poor children in Haiti and sharpen their dress-making skills, all in one class.

The schools participated in a sewing project that had Family and Consumer Science students making children’s dresses for needy girls in Haiti.

The project began with retired art teacher Karen Thorsen and her passion for helping Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world.

“There’s so little known about Haiti,” Thorsen said one evening over coffee and a photo album filled with fresh pictures from her trip.

Thorsen had returned from a mission trip to Haiti less than a week eariler. During her time in the Caribbean, Thorsen, who lives in Cary, and 51 other volunteers with the organization Mission to Haiti, built the roof of a new health clinic and provided other essential services for the people.

Months before her January mission trip, Thorsen had sent an e-mail to the Wake County Public School System asking if its FACS teachers and students would be willing to make clothes for children in Haiti. Out of the three teachers that replied so far, two have already participated.

“It was a great project,” said Paula Heidrick, a FACS teacher at Holly Springs High School.

Heidrick was conveniently able to incorporate the project into the curriculum of her Clothing Construction and Design class. “It came along at exactly the right time in the curriculum,” Heidrick said.

Since the skills taught in the curriculum coincided well with sewing dresses, Heidrick’s class went to work. Twenty female students were able to produce 20 dresses over a period of two months. Instead of producing small samples like most classes, these students were able to create entire articles of clothing.

Through this project, students of Holly Springs High and Millbrook High were able to contribute to the impoverished world while increasing their skills. “There’s a difference between community service and service learning,” said Thorsen.

Domonique Jones, a sophomore at Holly Springs High School and one of Heidrick’s students, said, “All of us were excited about being given the opportunity to help out someone less fortunate than us.”

When asked if she planned to continue the sewing project in her class curriculum, Heidrick responded, “I’ve already decided we’re gonna do it and expand it.”

Thorsen, who was able to see children in Haiti wearing the very clothes made by these Wake County students, was committed to the project and even brought fabric to the participating classes. “Here are these teenage students doing great things,” Thorsen said.