LOWER EAST SIDE — A sewing class at the non-profit social service agency Henry Street Settlement has been around since the 1940s and is still going strong. The thread that holds it all together? Ruth Taube, the teacher who’s been there for over 50 years.
Taube, 95, has been running The Home Planning Workshop at the Henry Street Settlement for decades. “I teach sewing, knitting, crocheting, embroidery, and if you have troubles, I teach you how to cope with them,” she told PIX11 News.
Taube estimates that she’s taught at least 5,000 people at her workshop since she started in 1966.
The longtime instructor says you’ve got to have a love for the craft. “With me it’s my hobby, my livelihood, and my life.”
And while sewing brings joy to her life, David Garza, the Executive Director at Henry Street Settlement, says she brings so much of that joy to others. “She’s been an inspiration since day one. Her work ethic, her consistency, compassion, the fact she’s in tune with people who come to the program. She’s definitely a role model we hold up high,” he said.
Taube says her work keeps her healthy and in the loop, which ultimately creates more quality time with her own family.
The Henry Street Settlement in the Lower East Side has been around for 125 years and provides social services, arts programs and healthcare services to New Yorkers of all ages.
Find more information on classes and services at HenryStreet.org.
