Expat communities can be rather primitive societies. We have the internet, sure, but word of mouth is still the communication du jour. Such is the case with many groups that get started in the Emirates. A meets B, B suggests something to A, A goes, ‘hmm,’ and promptly rallies a group of stay-at-home mums in a series of twice weekly coffee-morning-turned-sweat-shop sewing sessions. So it began with the Pink Puffs (well, maybe not the sweat shop bit).
Back in 2007, founder Tess France attended a walk for breast cancer in Al Ain. Here she met a representative from the Tawam Hospital. She was promptly told of a group in Australia who sewed cushions for women who have undergone mastectomies. Shortly after, the Pink Puffs were formed.
Two years down the line we bump into Marina Bruce. Marina is just one of 20 Al Ain women who donate their time to sewing breast cancer cushions for patients at the Tawam Hospital. She originally discovered the group via the traditional British expat way: coffee mornings. These she stumbled across on a Brit expat forum website, but the group spans a wide collection of nationalities, she says, from British to Kiwi, to Aussie, Indian and Japanese. The ladies meet up every two weeks, usually at Tess’s or Marina’s house, where a three-hour sewing session slowly evolves into a leisurely coffee morning, a pot lunch and ‘a wee blather’. But what are breast cancer cushions, we ask?
‘Basically they are just crescent-shaped cushions worn over the shoulder,’ says Marina. ‘They’re for women who have had breast operations and form a barrier over the wound: for example, so that the patients can use a seatbelt when travelling in a car.’ They’re also worn while sleeping, or carrying a handbag, anytime to prevent accidental knocks and injuries. The idea came from Australia, where the cushion was originally developed. An Australian woman designed it in 1994, after a friend who had undergone the operation had complained about banging her wound. Since then, thousands of women across New South Wales have benefited, with around 50,000 cushions produced by women in the Zonta network. Now it’s the UAE’s turn.
In Al Ain, the numbers are not quite so huge; they create around 10 to 15 cushions in one session, says Marina. Yet, out of the group, she is the only one with any professional sewing experience, she says. It was how she originally joined. ‘One of the ladies, upon hearing that I had a curtain-making company back in Scotland for 14 years, thought I might be able to get involved. I met Tess and she told me all about it.’ But there isn’t any call for excessive sewing experience, advises Marina. The cushions are simple to make and each person is assigned a different job. ‘You don’t make them from scratch. Somebody cuts, somebody sews, somebody stuffs and then somebody hand-finishes and packs them.’ Along with each cushion is written a message of encouragement, she says, written in both English and Arabic as a way of lending more than just physical support.
We originally bumped into Marina via Freecycle.com (see December issue). The group were looking for someone to donate a sewing machine for free. ‘We didn’t get one’, she says, ‘but someone donated Dhs500 so we were able to buy one.’ Usually the group doesn’t require donations. Their materials are supplied by the Tawam Hospital, and, once a year, the hospital staff visit the Pink Puffs and take photos in order to show to the patients. ‘There is no financial benefit to the group, only a feeling of fellowship and friendship,’ she says rather cheerfully.
Naturally, the genetic make-up of the Pink Puffs tends to err on the side of female and a small collection of stay-at-home mums. Asked if gents can join, ‘The question has never come up before,’ replies Marina – that’s not a no then. Nevertheless, the atmosphere is always friendly, she says, and newcomers are more than welcome. ‘With Abu Dhabi being an expat community, people come and go all the time, so there are always vacancies.’
In the end the Pink Puffs are all about helping people. ‘Our group are from all over the world and, speaking for the ladies involved, you just feel like you’re doing something useful for your fellow woman,’ says Marina. Certainly, there is little argument to be had with that.
To find out more about joining the Pink Puffs, email Tess France on tessfrance@hotmail.com.
