COMFORT QUILTS: INFUSED WITH LOVE

 

 

Eleven volunteers from six communities recently participated in the Power of the Quilt Project’s inaugural winter quilt-a-thon held virtually on Jan. 18 in celebration of MLK Day and a commitment to service. The event was organized by Cris Crawford.

“I was overwhelmed by the response,” Crawford stated. “With the pandemic, we haven’t been able to hold our in-person events for almost an entire year. It was great to have so many familiar faces greeting one another via Zoom and working together on charity quilts.”

Folks logged in at 10 a.m. and dedicated the next five hours to cutting fabrics, making quilt tops, and sandwiching and tying quilts by hand.

“I don’t quilt,” said Susan Weaver of Hopkinton, Mass., “but I can sew, and I like to help. Cris taught me how to stitch together a continuous train of 2.5” fabric to make a binding that I will now machine stitch on a sandwiched quilt. The finishing touch is blind-stitching by hand, on the reverse side.”

Once completed, the quilts are dropped off with Sally Demler of Sherborn, a longtime UUAC member and fellow PQP participant. Demler is living with cancer. She takes the finalized lap robes to the infusion unit she visits regularly for chemotherapy treatments. Some quilts are provided to hospice patients and others to cancer treatment centers throughout eastern Mass.

“Every four or five weeks, I make the trip,” said Demler. “It’s a privilege to be able to be part of this group and to supply others with these beautiful creations. Recipients are overjoyed and typically speechless when the nurse hands them one of these beauties. Every stitch is infused with love.”

The Power of the Quilt Project, which began about 15 years ago, has been coordinated by a few folks over the years, including Crawford. Since its inception, several thousand cheery quilts have been distributed to men, women, and children who are undergoing chemotherapy treatments.

Cris Crawford, pictured here in her sewing studio on MLK Day, 

taught fellow participants an easy way to bind a quilt. Cris organized the first virtual winter quilt-a-thon event Jan 18.

Each lap robe is about 42” by 64” and backed in flannel to provide some warmth to the patients as they receive their treatments. Quilts created with animal-themed or child-centric fabrics are delivered to Project Linus for youngsters facing hardship who are living in shelters or in a hospital setting.

“These quilts are a bright spot in the lives of people going through a hard time, and the Power of the Quilt Project allows us to share our gifts and caring with others in a very meaningful way,” Weaver said, adding, “it’s a great time of fellowship and support for us as well.”

For now because of the pandemic, quilt-a-thons will continue to be held regularly, until it is safe to meet in person. If you are interested in participating, contact Cris Crawford at crawford.cris@gmail.com. To find out more about the Power of the Quilt Project or make a donation to help buy supplies, visit www.uuac.org.