The Miami Herald, Inc.; a Knight Ridder publication. One Herald Plaza, Miami, FL 33132-1693 - Miami Herald (MH) - Saturday, November 23, 1996 Edition: Keys Section: Local Page: 1B Word Count: 687
Jacqueline Charles, Herald Staff Writer

But knowing that a simple patchwork could provide love and comfort to a baby born with the virus that causes AIDS was enough motivation for some Cooper City High students in the Early Childhood Education program.

So with needle and thread and yards of fabric decorated with the images of Mother Goose, Raggedy Ann and Precious Moments, 23 Cooper City High students set out to blanket HIV-positive babies.

"These are kids who don't have anything," said senior Kim Glazer, 17. "But at least they will know that someone who doesn't even know them cares enough to make them a quilt."

Less than a month after Kim and her classmates began cutting, stitching and embroidering patches of colorful material, the final product -- 30 handmade crib-size quilts -- was ready for delivery. On Friday, students presented the quilts to the Broward County Health Department. Called ABC (At-risk Babies Crib) Quilts, the tiny comforters will be distributed to needy and abandoned HIV-positive babies who are living in hospitals and foster homes.

"It's wonderful," said Joy Levy, a health educator with the Health Department and area coordinator for ABC Quilts.

Levy mentioned the ABC Quilt project during a visit to Cooper City High several weeks ago. She has been trying to get more high school students involved in the project, she said. Early Childhood Education teacher Ellen Dyer volunteered her class.

Students were alloted 21 hours to make the quilts. They worked on them Tuesdays and Thursdays during class time over three weeks.

While some worked in teams -- making two quilts -- others, like 18-year-old Mesia Pinnock, worked solo, using donated cloth provided by Levy. Prescilla Roche, 16, and Kim Carby, 18, even spent their own money, buying fabric themselves.

"We didn't care about spending the money," Carby said of the $10 the duo spent on two yards of Precious Moments fabric. "These babies don't have anything. We just want them to be comfortable."

The work was sometimes tedious, occasionally frustrating but ultimately satisfying.

"You hear stories about children with AIDS, but it doesn't really hit home until you get involved to help them," said senior Tara-Kaye Clunis, 17, as she watched her partner place the finishing touches on their purple and cream-colored quilt emblazoned with choo-choo trains: their embroidered names on the border.

The recipients, although too tiny to say thank you, now have a warm and cozy reminder that they have not been forgotten.

"Even though they are in a hospital, this allows them to have a pretty, unique and individual possession," Levy said. "The fact that they are handmade and people put a lot of time into these quilts means a lot." Describing the past few weeks as "magic and crazy," Dyer said the quilt-making has been a rewarding experience for all.

"These kids may never remember the paper assignments they have," said Dyer, "but they will remember these quilts."

HOW TO HELP

The ABC Quilts project is always looking for donated materials and volunteers to make quilts for babies and children under the age of 6. Currently there is a need for 150 quilts to go to babies born HIV-positive or affected by alcohol or other drugs. To volunteer or to get more information, contact Joy Levy at the Broward County Health Department at (954) 467-4957 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. or Priscilla D'Agostino at (954) 431-3426.

CAPTION: photo: PRECIOUS GIFT: Kim Carby, 18, stitches her and her friend Priscilla Roche's names into a Precious Moments quilt they made together. (a) , CLASS PROJECT: Carol City senior Monica Lecusay, 17, works on a quilt that will be donated to an HIV-positive baby. (a) , SHARED EFFORT: Carrie Waters, at left, and Jennifer DeRoso, both junior at Cooper City High, finish a Winnie the Pooh and Piglet quilt to be given to a child who was born HIV-positive. Twenty-three students got involved in the project. (a - ran in state)

Photos by EMILY KELSEY / Herald Staff Photos by EMILY KELSEY / Herald Staff

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