Last Wednesday we celebrated the end of our quilting year and prepared for a new year in the sewing room! We partied, worked and dreamed. At noon we had lunch with the hand quilters and presented our checks from the 2023 sales to representatives of the two missions we support.
The Quilters at First were proud to present a check to the TV Ministry for $9,250 and a check to the Religious Nurture Center(RNC) for $9,250. Rev. Amy thanked us and reminded us what an important role our TV Ministry plays not only in the lives of homebound persons, but also on Sundays with 8 inches of snow on the ground and with COVID still making the rounds. Most of our new first time visitors try us out on TV before coming to our Sanctuary in person.
Delaine H. represented the RNC, reporting that the numbers of attendees was climbing. She listed some of the activities such as visiting the Sedgwick Co. Zoo to see WILD LIGHTS and going to the Forum for ELF that our donation helps provide. It was a feel good moment!
After lunch, we spent the rest of our afternoon sorting 11 large boxes of fabric. A FUMC TV viewer heard about Quilters at First via our Quilt Sale Announcement in the Fall. When she decided to move to a one bedroom home closer to her family from a four bedroom home, she contacted the church to ask if the quilters could use her fabric! Of course we could! Her family brought 11 large boxes of great fabric to FUMC. It was like Christmas! We sorted by theme–holiday, sports, reproduction, juvenile, novelty, etc. We sorted by color and we sorted by size!
We dreamed of future projects that could be made using this fabric. Clear tubs were labeled and stacked for easy access. Nothing makes a quilter happier than new fabric with which to dream over!
Last Fall one of our members who had been seriously ill for several months passed away. Her family gave us her fabric, chiefly batiks, and some of her rulers, templates etc. Anytime we pull some of the beautiful fabric from those big containers, we will remember Lynn’s lovely appliqués using batiks.
We are grateful to these generous people who shared their fabric. I promise you it will be put to good use!
On a personal note, I was very, very good on my fabric diet in 2023. I purchased very little–some backing and some apron fabric for special orders. And it seems, I really need to continue the diet through out 2024. Remember my daughter sent me 11 quilt tops in various stages of completion plus yardage last fall? Our quilting room at the church is bursting at the seams after generous donations. So, it is another year reminding myself why I am on this self imposed quest to use up the fabric I have before it becomes dated and sent to the landfill. I want to support our local fabric shops and will make an effort to purchase fabric locally for any special needs that arise. So wish me luck and remind me not to torture myself by scrolling though all those online shops having great sales!
I am thinking another Log Cabin quilt, an Irish Chain, a baby quilt for a new family member, a red and white quilt…hmmm. Check in with me in December 2024!
I sincerely appreciate every one of you that read some of my ramblings–I know it can be confusing! Thank you for purchasing something you saw online—We would have nothing to give to the TV ministry or RNC if you had not bought a quilt or placemats or an apron! A huge thank you to all those people behind the scenes that allows the Quilt Sale in October to happen. And most of all to all my family, friends and acquaintances that are so understanding about my passion for quilting, thank you!
I want to wish you a happy holiday; may you find joy in little things and experience a peace that gives you comfort in this war weary world.
Quilts, Etc. 