News and Activities

News

• October 2023---The Socially Responsible Sweatshop of Kent, our volunteers, our Board, and our customers and friends are all proud to congratulate our amazing leader, Mary Ann Kasper, for being awarded Woman of the Year for Innovation by the The Women’s History Project of the Akron Area, led by the Summit County Historical Society
  We also would like to thank the Women’s History Project and the Summit County Historical Society of Akron for bestowing this honor upon Mary Ann, and thereby, upon all of our volunteers and supporters.

• October 2023--Volunteers of the SRS attended the Celebrate Portage awards dinner tonight. . . . and we won the Community Service Award!!!
  This award is not only for our founder and leader, Mary Ann Kasper, but also for our volunteers, our donors, and our customers!

  We all win when we work together for good!!

• August 11, 2021, See the story and video: Spectrum Visits SRS.

• March 28, 2021 Record-Courier opinion article by David E. Dix on Socially Responsible Sweatshop: Where good prevails in an unsettled world.

• 2020 has been quite the year for SRS. We donated $10,000 to Kent Social Services in January for a much needed freezer.

  We joined People Protecting Each Other Sustainably to make masks for frontline workers in March. We cut and sewed away, while sheltering in place, creating over 8,000 masks through the spring.

  During the Spring and Summer we met at a local park in order to stay connected. We returned to the outdoor Haymaker Market in May and offered our much needed sewn masks, as well as other items to the community for sale.

  We moved into a new work space, and along with many new members, we gave Kent Schools 3,255 and Ravenna schools roughly 500 cloth masks for the children.

  In November, we gave Kent Social Services an additional $5,000 for food for the holidays. KSS had been serving three times the number of people since the onset of COVID19 and desperately needed our help.

  SRS pulled together to offer an online holiday boutique that started in mid November. Community Members supported our mission and were able to purchase our lovingly and locally made items for their holiday and personal needs. In about one month , were able to make around $6,000 which will be used to support a local food insecurity effort. In the mean time, we as SRS volunteers are all trying to figure out ways to be safe during the pandemic, while remaining connected to our organization and its mission.

  We will be working at home on projects that will benefit local social services organizations as well as planning and implementing new projects. 2020 had some challenges and losses for everyone. I am grateful that in 2020 I have been able to get to know so many wonderful people who were willing to jump in and do something to make a difference in our community during such trying times.

  I hope that all of you have a meaningful, safe and blessed holiday season.

  -Mary Ann Kasper

• Here is a Portager OP-ED by Heidi Weisel (11/06/2020)

  The Socially Responsible Sweatshop of Kent donates to fight local food insecurity.

• In 2020, SRS has taken funds in its own account, earned throuh efforts of SRS members, and made a $10000 donation to Kent Social Services to support their good work in the local community.

  See this letter of acknowledgement from Kent Social Services

• We are proud to note that our member Barb Hipsman Springer has written an article about us, the Socially Responsible Sweatshop, and it has appeared in the March 2017 issue of AroundKent.

  Barb did a great job in the article explaining what SRS does and its history and current status.

  See this article online in Volume 13 of AroundKent.

• The SRS of Kent, Ohio, was given the 2016 Green Enterprise Award by the Portage Park District Foundation, Portage County Environment Conservation Award Benefit Dinner.

Activities

• Twice monthly sewing sessions to make products for sales at the Kent Farmers Market. See the SRS slide show. Clicking/swiping on the picture also works to move through the pictures.
  
  

         
   

  
  

• SRS works with Bonyo’s Kenya Mission and Kent State University School of Nursing to help people in Western Kenya.

• Sewing reusable female hygiene pads for Days for Girls.

  Days for Girls from Miles Hanon on Vimeo

  See this New York Times article ``Where a Taboo Is Leading to the Deaths of Young Girls''.

• Collaborate with Kent State University's Women's Center and Fashion School to create sanitary products for girls and women in Africa and India. See this page for more information.

• Participating in 2017 Kent Creativity Festival to demonstrate making tarn from old clothing to encourage children to recycle and reuse.