Colby College students join forces with Waterville preschool

WATERVILLE — Children attending public preschool at Educare Central Maine recently presented a handmade empathy quilt to a seriously ill child being treated at the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital in Portland. The quilt presentation was held using Skype at the school in Waterville and the hospital’s treatment facility.

The squares of the quilt were created by the school’s children, 5 years old and younger, while participating in Kidz b Kidz Colby art parties with Colby College students. Now in its second year, Kidz b Kidz Colby is the local affiliate program of the Boston-based, national Kidz b Kidz nonprofit organization, according to a Educare Central Maine news release.

Additional Images

Educare Central Maine preschool students Skype with William Alger, a patient at Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, during an empathy quilt presentation. Contributed photo

Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital teacher Abby Snyder with William Alger, 9, of Winslow, recipient of an empathy quilt made by Kidz b Kidz Colby and Educare Central Maine preschoolers. Contributed photo

“My Colby peers helped these children to understand the difference they can make in another child’s life,” Hannah Corderman, founder of the Colby College-based and student-led program, said in the release. The program’s mission is to teach empathy, charity awareness and empowerment to children of all ages.

The quilt was designed with squares onto which the children’s art was transferred, then sewn by volunteer Charlotte Sweeney.

For more information, visit www.educarecentralmaine.org.

Related Stories