REDMOND, WA – A 1913 Western Electric Portable sewing machine, that quite possibly made face masks during the 1918 Spanish Flu Pandemic, is now making face masks for the 2020 COVID Pandemic, with help from local children.

When MCH teacher Alyx Hodges spotted an antique sewing machine at a local thrift shop, she was compelled to buy it. At $30.00, she thought that it might be a nice decorative item in her home. However, the machine ended up in her garage where it sat for several years. Then COVID happened.

Looking for a simple project that her summer camp kids could use in her socially distanced childcare room, Hodges remembered the sewing machine. Because the classroom is creating a strong culture of mask wearing, and because Hodges had extra fabric lying around, she found a face mask pattern and put her campers to work.

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REDMOND, WA – Call it a little bit of Italy on the eastside. Inspired by Gaudi mosaics during a trip to Italy, Montessori Children’s House (MCH) Head of School, Jennifer McConnell put Art Specialist, Michelle Dias, up to a challenge: Create a mosaic wall outside of the school’s newest building.

While it may have started out as a simple enough request, Dias poured all of her creativity into the project, resulting in a comprehensive project spanning two years. 

​The project kicked off with a meeting between Dias and the students. Because the wall faced the school’s pollinator garden, the students decided that a work that included bees, butterflies and flowers was appropriate. The wall also included the student’s handprints, an inspirational element from Dias’ youth – her mother led a hand print mosaic project when she was in 6th grade. “I wanted the kids' hands to be reaching up, like they're growing in the garden, and the teachers' hands reaching down from the top to help pull the children up with knowledge,” Dias said. ​

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