By Lynda Abegg

For the Courier

news@thepccourier.com

PICKENS — A lot of people say it takes a village, but if you ask any member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), they will say it takes a chapter.

In this case, the Fort Prince George Chapter.

May Headley, who lives in Pickens, asked members of the chapter to bring in “those little bottles of shampoo and conditioner you get at hotels.” It didn’t take long before she had several bins full, of not only shampoo and conditioner, but toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant and even purse-sized hand sanitizers.

Harriet Nash, who lives in Central, read an article in The Journal in Seneca asking for donations of towels, soap, shampoo and other hygiene products for victims of a devastating April 13 tornado who were staying at the YMCA.

“I knew May had collected all that soap and shampoo and thought this was the perfect use for it,” Nash said.

She emailed a copy of the article to Carolyn Nations, the regent of the Fort Prince George Chapter.

Nations, who lives in Easley, read the article and jumped into her pickup truck and set out for Pickens to pick up the items Headley had accumulated. On the way, she stopped to purchase some towels.

Meanwhile, Headley had recruited her grandchildren, and they had sorted and created 66 individual bags, or shower packets, as they called them.

“By placing the items in bags, a person could just pick up a bag and it would have soap, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste — everything they would need,” Headley said.

Nations then headed to Central to meet up with Nash, and they delivered the items to the municipal court building in Seneca, while socially distancing and wearing homemade masks, of course.

Fort Prince George DAR members have also been busily sewing masks to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Ann Warmuth volunteered Don, her HODAR (husband of DAR).

“Don’s been sewing since the 1980s — that’s when schools still taught home economics,” she said with a laugh.

Masks made by the members have been distributed to the Richard M. Campbell Veterans Nursing Home in Anderson, as well as to hospitals, nurses, friends and neighbors.

“I gave a mask to my dog groomer,” Warmuth said. “The dogs kept trying to lick her face and her mask kept unravelling.”

DAR has delivered 168,780 masks to nursing homes and hospitals. South Carolina DAR chapters have made 2,448 of those masks and, according to Nations, are still “sewing strong.”

DAR is a women’s service organization dedicated to promoting historic preservation, education and patriotism. Anyone interested in joining DAR who would like more information can visit dar.org or contact Anne Kilpatrick at anedee@charter.net.