Hope soars through beaded angels
More than 1400 Ashley Angels will be handed out this festive season.
ANGELS symbolise hope, goodness, purity and protection and with this in mind, two locals embarked on a year long project to create beaded angels for the elderly in the Highway community.
As proud and active members of the Ashley Residents Neighbourhood Watch, both Joanne Ribeiro and Amy Faile teamed up to start the Ashley Angels project in February this year. “It kicked off when Joanne gave me a beaded angel to hang on my Christmas tree. When we first started putting all the pieces together, we only had the beads and the crowns and since then we have definitely improved from when we began, as well as found new pieces to put onto the angels,” said Amy.
The 1480 intricately crafted angels were created in four different sizes and the colours of the beads used depended on the colour of the body. All of the beads and wire were purchased by the two women. “It was mainly the two of us that were involved in creating the angels and in the beginning it took us between 15 and 20 minutes per angel and at the moment it takes us about five minutes to complete one,” said Joanne.
According to Amy, the duo were intent on handing them out to various old age home in the Highway area. “A lot of people forget their elders during the Christmas period and we thought it would be something special for them. A small token to let them know that there are people out there that are thinking of them,” said Amy. Attached to each of the angels is a small message that reads; ‘Blessed by an angel to watch over you’. The Village, Homely Haven, Doone Village, Bethany Gardens and Pinehaven are a few of the homes that will receive the beaded beauties.
“We’ve formed a strong friendship over this, we’ve sat on floors and rummaged through bargain bins and had many laughs together. The one time we could not contain ourselves was at a local store when a woman entered the shop and asked for a bead with a hole in it. We were absolutely finished,” laughed Joanne.
Next year the duo plan on heading another beaded project and will also hand these out to the old age homes in the area.
