March 3, 2003

Orphan's daughter now clothes orphans around the world
___By Amy Seale
___Buckner News Service
___It has been more than 100 years since 9-year-old John Henderson and his four siblings arrived at Buckner Orphans Home. Founder R.C. Buckner provided a home and

Dorothy Yates got started in her ministry of making clothes for orphans when asked to make a dress for a baby's funeral.

a future for the Henderson children, orphaned by the death of their parents.
___Today, Henderson's daughter, Dorothy Yates, continues to give to the ministry that provided for the needs of her father by sewing baby dresses for orphans around the world.
___"He loved Father Buckner," remembered Yates, an 87-year-old retired elementary school teacher. "He always talked about Father Buckner."
___In that same spirit of love, Yates, who has been sewing since childhood, made more than 30 dresses for abandoned and orphaned children living in Russia.
___"Each of the babies in the babies' home are so precious, and they deserve to wear these precious hand-made dresses," said Tiffany Taylor, director of Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls. "It was such a privilege to bring these very special, one-of-a kind outfits to the very special children that we serve."
___Yates said she learned to sew by watching her mother.
___"My mother was a fabulous seamstress and a perfectionist," she recalled. "You could not make a mistake. And I just sat right there and watched her. I put in hems, sewed on buttons and did little things. I just watched her."
___Joining a sewing club called the "Needlers" at University Christian Church in Fort Worth transformed Yates' sewing hobby into a ministry.
___She started off making rag dolls and clothes for dolls. Then five years ago, Yates' daughter, Shirley Turner, approached her about making a dress for a baby's funeral.
___"A friend of hers in Kansas City had a premature baby, and there was nothing to bury her in," Yates explained. "I thought, I'm making doll clothes, I can make preemie clothes."
___That launched a ministry through which she has donated hundreds of baby dresses to hospitals, orphanages and ministries around the world.
___"It takes about a day to make two dresses," Yates said. "I do all the machine work and then the hand work. It is very tedious work. But it keeps my mind active--that's the best thing."
___

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