Warm hearts, warm socks at Village Church Warm hearts, warm socks at Village Church (December 21, 2005)

By Jane Knoerle

Almanac Lifestyles Editor

If you still need a box of Christmas cards, consider stopping by the office of Woodside Village Church for their new line of cards made from drawings by children in South Africa.

The original drawings were taken from thank-you notes the African kids wrote for the church's gifts of warm winter socks. (Yes, it does get cold in South Africa.)

The colorful drawings were done by fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade African students. They are available in sets of 10 for $15 or six for $10.

The warm sock project was the inspiration of Peter Buckley, who attends the Woodside church's Sunday school. He wanted to do more for the children in South Africa who are part of a school lunch program Woodside church has supported for years.

To raise money, he and other church school kids decorated new crew socks with the slogan "Sock it Away," and gave them to church members to stow their loose change into every night.

They raised $1,000.

After receiving the thank-you notes, the church, under the direction of church co-moderator Wayne Larocque, decided it would be a good idea to raise even more money by selling cards featuring the drawings. When we talked last week, about half of the 250 packets of cards had been sold.

Woodside Village Church is located at 3154 Woodside Road in Woodside. The cards are available in the church office. For more information, call Wayne Larocque at 851-2595.

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