Sexual Assault Care Bags
Our Inspiration
This project began when a mother of a sexual assault survivor walked into the ACMSI office with a hand-sewn cloth bag and asked about local resources for victims.
The bag she had with her came from a sexual assault program in another location. It was a message of kindness during the most horrific day of her and her daughter’s life. To this day, she has kept this bag, a symbol of kindness, which has a label sewn in it “with love in every thread”.
This began the ACMSI There For YOU! Sexual Assault Care Bags project.
See Below how to help make the care bags
See Below how to help make the care bags
About Our Care Bags
These care bags provide immediate comfort, dignity, and personal relief to survivors during one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. Each bag is beautifully hand-sewn by local community members and prayed over by the First United Methodist Church before reaching a survivor’s hands. Filled with essential community resources, informational TAASA (Texas Association Against Sexual Assault) guidebooks, soothing sensory items, and uplifting notes written by fellow survivors, they offer both practical guidance and emotional grounding when it is needed most. Every detail—from the careful stitches to the heartfelt prayers and shared stories—delivers a powerful message: you are safe, you are deeply cared for, and you do not have to walk the path alone.
There For YOU! supplies emergency responders with handmade Care Bags containing information, resources, and comfort items for sexual assault survivors. Use the Amazon Wish list button to help support this project.
These thoughtfully created Care Bags are designed to help alleviate the immediate effects of trauma and aim to cultivate a compassionate atmosphere where survivors can embark on their healing journey with dignity and hope.
Care Bags may include:
Survivor resource and information guide such as: Texas Association Against Sexual Assault
VINE information
Advocacy Center brochure and welcome letter
Health Resource brochure
After Sexual Assault: Common Questions
How Family and Friends Can Help a Sexual Assault Survivor
HHS Information for Survivors of Sexual Assault
Card designed by EMT/Firefighter Faith Rice and handwritten note from a survivor
Calming coloring pages, colored pencils, journal, and pen
Fidgets, tissues, and other comfort items
By supplying these bags the There For YOU! project hopes to ensure survivors are supported in a trauma-informed manner, from their first interaction.
"Pack a Bag, Pass the Hope” use the amazon wish list to purchase content items or reach out to help stuff them.
Want to support our Care Bags?
Contribute to our Wishlist!
Small Stitches, Big Impact
Hands that sew, Hearts that give, help us make care bags today!
Materials:
One yard of material, makes two bags. Each bag requires two 36” pieces of ribbon or cording made from fabric.
Fabric Cut: 36” length and 16” width
Sample Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cwwYgo9U7Y
Care Bag Sewing Instructions:
Step 1: Prep & Cut the Bag Body
Cut one large rectangle piece of fabric measuring 36 inches long by 16 inches wide fold material in half (short end to short end) so the “pretty” side (right sides) are facing itself and press with Iron, so fabric is flat and wrinkle free. Sew 1/2” seam on both long sides (inside out).
Step 2: Mark and Sew the Bag Sides
Starting from the top open edges, measure 2 inches down along both the left and right sides. Mark these spots with chalk or a pencil. Sew 1/2” seam on both long sides starting from your chalk mark down to the bottom fold. Leave the top 2” section on both sides unsewn.
Step 3: Create the Drawstring Channel (Casing)
Fold the top edges: At the unsewn top 2-inch openings, fold the raw edges inward twice (toward the inside of the bag) to hide the rough edges, and iron flat. Sew these small, folded edges down.
Fold the top hem down: Fold the entire top raw edge of the bag down toward the inside by 1 inch to create a tube (casing) for the string. Iron flat and sew along the bottom edge of this fold, all the way around the top opening. Repeat for the other side. You now have two open tubes at the top of the bag.
Step 4: Make the Drawstrings
Cut the strips: Cut 2 long fabric strips, ribbon or twine, 38”-40” in length, turn right side out and press with iron.
Step 5: Thread the Strings
Attach a safety pin to the end of one drawstring. Feed the safety pin into the right side of the front top casing, slide it all the way through, loop it right into the back casing, and bring it out on the same side you started. Tie the two ends of the string together in a knot. Repeat the exact same process with the second drawstring, entering from the left side instead. Pull both knotted ends to cinch your bag closed.
When closed, each bag should accommodate a 9.5“x 11.5” folder, along with smaller items.
