WINFIELD – Volunteer work can be a rewarding hobby for many, but for Lorraine Tansley, it's a rewarding lifestyle.

Tansley, who is 99 years old, has been a volunteer for 35 years at Central Dupage Hospital in Winfield.

She started volunteering in 1980 at the hospital coffee shop, "Koffee Korner," which is no longer part of the hospital.

In 2002, Tansley began her work with the Baby Hat Ladies, a group of women based out of Central DuPage who sew more than 8,000 hats per year for newborns. There are 10 volunteers in the group, five of whom meet every Wednesday at the hospital.

Tansley, who lives in Wheaton, said she began her work with the Baby Hat Ladies because her friends were involved with it, and because she likes to keep busy.

Baby Hat Ladies organizer Gail Johnson said Tansley is an important part of the group.

"She continues to be the mainstay of this group of women," Johnson said. "Without her, I don't know how the group would continue."

The Baby Hat Ladies produce 700 hats per month made out of stockinette material. On top of the hats, they sew a pompom. The color of the pompoms vary depending on the month.

At their Wednesday meetings, the volunteers form an assembly line to increase productivity.

The first volunteer cuts the material for the hats, the second sews the hat at the top of the material, the third turns the hat inside out and cuffs it, the fourth makes the pompom, and the fifth volunteer, Tansley, sews the pompom on.

Tansley said she sews on about 350 pompoms per month.

"The people we give the hats to are always amazed by how many we make per month, and I hear so many good stories about the hats from those people," Tansley said. "Once, we got a letter from a mother with a picture of her three children wearing three different hats that we had made. They always appreciate our service."

Tansley said her favorite part of her volunteer work is meeting new people at the hospital. Johnson said Tansley is very popular around Central DuPage, and people are always stopping to meet the woman who makes the baby hats.

This April, Tansley received the Volunteer I Care award at the hospital's volunteer luncheon. The nominees were chosen by the heads of volunteer services for Central DuPage. The award goes to an individual who exemplifies service.

Tansley said she enjoys her work at the hospital because she can give back to her community.

"I think my time as a volunteer has been really wonderful. I've been a patient at Central Dupage and members of my family have been patients there," Tansley said. "The hospital means a lot to us, a lot to my family."