Sewing threads of hope across borders and between hearts
We refurbish donated sewing machines and place them with refugees and families living in poverty — in Utah and around the world — so they can learn a trade, earn an income, and lift themselves out of poverty.
Our Mission
Help end generational poverty in the U.S. and abroad, one electric or hand-crank sewing machine at a time.
What We Do
We refurbish and place quality sewing machines, sending them alongside trusted partners already traveling to communities in need.
How You Help
Give, donate a machine, carry one in your carry-on, or connect us with a sewing school or nonprofit.
From a closet in Utah to a sewing school overseas
Most of our machines start out forgotten. Here is what happens after you hand one over.
1. You give
Drop off a machine you no longer use, or give toward the cost of buying and fixing one.
2. We refurbish
Volunteers clean, repair and test every machine. Where power is unreliable, we convert it to a hand crank.
3. A partner carries it
Machines ride in carry-on luggage with nonprofits already headed to the community. No warehouse. No shipping container.
4. Someone starts earning
A sewing school trains the new owner, who sews clothing, uniforms and goods to sell. The income stays with the family.
The count so far
Gino started placing machines in 1985. The pace has picked up as we’ve placed sewing machines in deserving and capable hands across the world.
Why so many hand cranks?
Much of the world sews without a wall outlet. A hand-crank or treadle machine runs on the person using it, so it works in a village with no grid, in a refugee camp, or in a home where the power drops out every afternoon. Gino has spent years converting electric machines to hand crank for exactly those places.
We match the machine to the place:
- Hand crank where there is no electricity
- Electric where the power is steady
- Dual-function machines where power comes and goes
- Bought locally when we can, so we support the tailors and shops already there instead of undercutting them
We try to respect what is already there. Local craftsmanship and hand-woven textiles are worth more than anything we could ship in.
Lives Changed
Cameroon 2025
Some loving people put two of our refurbished sewing machines in the carryon luggage they took with them on a humanitarian trip to Cameroon. The
Sew Much Hope in Africa
Jina and Moana visited Zambia last fall, teaching sewing at an orphanage and providing sewing machines to the Chisomo Women’s Sewing Club. Sew Much Hope
“Merci anpil. May God bless you.”
Madame Manise, a mother of four in Haiti, the afternoon a hand-crank machine and a lap tray arrived at her home. She had lost both legs in a car accident and believed her working life was over. Now she sews goods her older children sell at the market.
Where the machines have gone
Some of the places Sew Much Hope machines are working today, and where our stories come from.
Requests keep coming in from across Africa. Shipping is usually the hard part, which is why many machines travel in a partner’s carry-on.
Four ways to help
Pick the one that fits you. Each one ends with a machine in someone’s hands.
Give
Zeffy charges us nothing, so 100% of your gift buys, fixes and ships machines.
Donate a machine
That machine in the closet still has years of work in it. We will put it to use.
Carry a machine
Traveling abroad? A refurbished machine fits in a carry-on bag.
Volunteer
Come to a work night in Lehi. No sewing skills required.
Upcoming volunteer days
Refurbishing happens in Lehi, Utah, and every work session goes up on JustServe. Come for an evening. We will show you what to do.
Volunteer Database Builder – Help Track Humanitarian Sewing Machines Worldwide
Sew Much Hope refurbishes sewing machines and sends them to disadvantage women, girls around the world. Seeking volunteer to build a simple database that tracks each machine’s details, repairs, and final destination.
VolunteerOur Partners
We work alongside organizations who share our mission — carrying machines on their trips, teaching sewing, and connecting us with the communities who need them most.
Help us sew hope
Your gift refurbishes another machine and puts it into willing hands. Every machine placed is a life changed.