Sewing isn’t going out of style for members of local 4-H clubs.

On Saturday, Dec. 14, 4-Hers spent four hours sewing medical play dolls for patients at Kalispell Regional Healthcare’s Montana Children’s hospital.

“We like to say it’s kids sewing for other kids,” said Carol Olson-Erickson with the Grand View Supreme 4-H Club.

The dolls are given to young patients and their siblings at the newly opened pediatric facility in Kalispell.

“Medical play dolls are used as a teaching tool with our Child Life Specialists to help explain medical procedures to patients,” explained a press release from Montana Children’s. “By allowing the patient to be ‘in charge’ of ‘performing’ a medical procedure on his or her doll, the patient learns about the procedure as well as gains a sense of control over their situation in the hospital.”

The dolls are made of soft, flesh-toned fabric and outfitted with mini hospital gowns. The idea for local 4-H members to get together to create the toys came from Kalispell quilter Lanette Cuffe.

A total of 35 youth, leaders and volunteers from 4-H organizations across Flathead County created around 30 dolls at the event last weekend. The doll-makers ranged in ages from 6 to 15 years old, and they were helped out by adult leaders and volunteers.

“That’s the great thing—the youth were actually doing the sewing,” Olson-Erickson reported.

The young seamstresses used a mix of 4-H-owned and personal sewing machines, as well as fabric and polyester fill donated by community members.

“I was really impressed with how the kids sat down to the sewing machine and got sewing,” Olson-Erickson said. “Some are quilters, some sew, but for quite a few this was their first time touching a sewing machine.

“They dove right in. It was pretty impressive,” she added.

The adult leaders and more experienced sewers guided the newer crafters through the use of sewing machines. They set up an assembly line, with the older children making the dolls and clothing and the younger students stuffing the dolls.

“The doll itself only a takes a few minutes. The outfit is more time-consuming,” Olson-Erickson noted. The doll-makers had the opportunity to personalize each doll with individual faces, Band-Aids and sometimes even incisions to match the procedures the recipients will be undergoing.

After the New Year, the children who made the dolls will deliver them to patients in the hospital. They also plan to continue making more dolls with sewing events four times every year. The next chance to sew dolls will take place sometime in the spring, although it hasn’t been scheduled yet.

Olson-Erickson said the area 4-H clubs are determined to “keep the hospital stocked” with all the dolls the patients and their families might need.

“We look forward to creating more,” she said.

Reporter Bret Anne Serbin may be reached at bserbin@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4459.