Not all children decided to sleep in on the first day of the Thanksgiving holiday break.

The youth of Greater New Zion Baptist Church got together Monday morning with the church’s youth coordinator Dorothy Sanders to make arts and crafts to give to residents of area nursing homes next month. The group of seven girls worked diligently to make magnets, color pictures and paint vases made of plastic bottles.

“You might not have money for another person, but you can make stuff for them,” said youth member Kierra Dottery, 11.

Sanders said she’s teaching the children that not everything has to be bought.

“We’re painting bottles for them to put flowers in,” Sanders said. “They were just going to throw them away.”

Sanders plans to take the youth group around to area nursing homes to distribute the gifts and to have them carol for the residents on Dec. 21 and 22.

“At the nursing home, they need cheering up,” Sanders said. “And I’m teaching (the youth group) that everything isn’t centered around you, you need to light someone else’s life up.”