CHEEKTOWAGA, NY- A Cheektowaga man is offering hope to cancer patients through special handmade gifts, and that's why he is this week's 2 On Your Side "Good Neighbor."
At 83-years-old, Robert Rowe has finally found his life's purpose.
"I reassure the people that there's hope," he said.
He does that by sewing dolls, a hobby he picked up in 1999 when he was diagnosed with Lymphoma. The retired pipe and valve repairman said it was just something to do.
Now he spends as many as SIX hours a day, everyday, sitting alone at his late-wife's vintage sewing machine, making the dolls. He delivers as many as 15 dolls each week to local doctor's offices.
He starts by sewing a simple cloth body, stuffing it, making a dress with lace, adding a heart, and a label on the back. The label has Mr. Rowe's name, the year it was made, and a short scripture from Proverbs 3: 5-6.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. That's what I based my faith on when I went through Lymphoma cancer. And that's why that verse is on there," he said.
Mr. Rowe embroiders each face by hand and says every doll has it's own personality.
"You don't put the face on if you have a bad day because actually it'll reflect in the doll," he said.
The hair is made with yarn and attached by Velcro.
"When mommy loses her hair, you take the hat off, then you grab the hair and take it off, then you put the hat back like mommy would do," Mr. Rowe explained.
Mr. Rowe thinks he's made about 800 dolls but he's lost count.
"His love for what he does drives him. And they're all perfect. They're all a little different but they're all perfect in their own way," said Veronica Manary, a Registered Nurse at the Amherst office of Roswell Park, who has formed a special relationship with Mr. Rowe.
He will often share his story with patients as he hands out the dolls.
"It gave me more confidence that I could make it through, just like he did," said Susanne Jarczewski, one of the first patients to receive a doll from Mr. Rowe when she was diagnosed with cancer 2 years ago. "It gives you something to hold onto when you have nothing else."
And hearing that is his biggest reward. He would never charge a penny for the dolls.
"Everything I do is made with L-O-V-E. You can't buy love," he said.
Mr. Rowe has no plans to slow down, but he does want to plan for the future. He's hoping to teach others how to make them, so his legacy will continue and the dolls will live on.
To reach Mr. Rowe about learning the pattern or donating materials, contact 2 On Your Side's Melissa Holmes at Melissa.Holmes@wgrz.com or 716-849-2216.