The Villages - May 2020 - 43

When Villages residents Karen Meglio and Carol
Newton met Sawyer, they decided to take up the cause.
In 2015, the two started their own branch of the
organization - right here in The Villages.
"We placed a pink tree full of earrings for cancer
patients at (Florida) Cancer Specialists in the Sharon
Morse Building," Newton said. "We just wanted to put a
sparkle back in their lives and give them a little happiness
during a time of fear and uncertainty. I had never done
anything like this and I was just moving to The Villages,
so I thought this would be a good start."
Although Newton and Meglio were perfect strangers
before their charity endeavors, they have become fast
friends along with more than a dozen others who have
joined their group.
"Some of the women in our group have had cancer,
and others just want to do something for someone else,"
Meglio said. "I think everyone knows someone who's
been affected by cancer."
Twice a month, members gather to spread out their
stash: tiny gems, sparkling glass, pear-shaped droplets,
polished metals and brilliant beads of various colors,
cuts and shapes.
"Everyone is free to make what they want," Newton
said. "We even take broken jewelry apart to recreate it."
As for creative inspiration, Newton said it's all
around.
"Sometimes I sit in church and see a piece of jewelry
- I think, 'I bet I can make that,'" she said.
In the project's early stages, collecting beads was
a bigger task, but word of mouth has since made the
process easier.
"We've received beads from shops around the area
and Villages recreation center donation boxes," Newton
said. "We've even gotten donations from patients - they
tell me how much they appreciate what we're doing.
They sometimes leave us thank-you cards."
It's anyone's guess how many hands, hours or beads
have gone to the effort. But Newton and Meglio are
happy to say they've reached their very first goal: 10,000
pairs of earrings donated to five infusion centers.
"It's really something," Meglio said. "But it's also
hard to think about that many people with cancer."
They vow to keep their hands busy knowing that little
acts of kindness - as small as hand-strung beads -
sometimes mean the most.
MAGAZINE

43
The Villages - May 2020

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