The Manchester Enterprise
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Quilters stitch up legacy
Group uses their artistic ability to bring comfort and show support for others in need
By Alana West, Special Writer
PUBLISHED: February 15, 2007
Over the past eight years, members of the Manchester Quilters have met to piece, sew and tie more than 1,000 quilts.
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The quilts are given as gifts to comfort children and adults with cancer or other life-threatening illnesses as they enter the hospital. They have sent them to Hurricane Katrina survivors and anyone who is experiencing difficulties.
Thirty-two women belong to the quilting group, which meets from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. the second and fourth Saturdays of the month at the Sew-Write shop on Adrian Street.
Many are members of Bethel United Church of Christ in Manchester, where the group originated. But more have joined the group for the camaraderie, the charitable venture and the fun of quilting.
Members in the group range in age from 15 to 87, and the number of attendees on any given Saturday varies.
"It's nice to get together like this. It's worthwhile," said Betty Schneider, one of the group members, who wears a sweatshirt embroidered with the words, "Blessed are the Piecemakers.".
"I could sit and read, but when I do, I say, 'You're wasting time. Do something for somebody.'"
Member Susan Luckhardt said the quilters try to keep ahead by having on hand more quilts than they need.
"We like to have one ready," she said.
Schneider said the quilters just show up when they can attend and bring potluck lunches to share.
"You don't have to call if you're not coming," she said.
Nancy Bihlmeyer, who owns Sew-Rite and who is a member of the group, lets them work and store their material there.
When a quilt top is finished the group makes suggestions for borders or backing, but "Whoever takes it and does it gets to decide," said member Sidney Palmer.
"She can use what she likes, but we've all said what we think," Schneider said. "We get along fine. No bickering. Nobody's set in their ways. You go and look (at their quilt) and away you go."
The group makes its quilts in 40-inch widths so that they will fit the original width of the material without having to cut it. It makes things go faster, and there is less waste.
They use rotary cutters, and mats, rather than scissors, because rotary cutters are more precise, Schneider said.
The group is trying something new this year, Luckhardt said. They make quilt kits for people to take home and work on, and bring back when they have finished. That way, they are not limited to just the time that the group meets during the month.
Alma Arnette of Manchester, who also makes her own quilts, provides a lot of the machine-quilting necessary for the project, Schneider said.
Every year during Martin Luther King weekend, many of the quilters go on a retreat to a local bed and breakfast, where they spend the weekend making quilts. Luckhardt said they try to pick a location nearby, so that those who don't wish to spend the night can attend during the day.
"This year, we made the entire top for our sauerkraut supper raffle quilt," Luckhardt said.
Every year, the group raffles off a quilt at both the church's Ice Cream Social, and at the annual sauerkraut supper to raise money to buy the material they need for the year.
"We have almost $1,000, but that goes quick when we are buying nice material," Schneider said.
Members also try to incorporate learning a new skill. This year, Virginia Vogel, a former area resident who is now a professor in the art department at the University of Nevada in Reno, showed members an easy way to piece the flying geese quilting pattern at their retreat.
The group regularly donates to the C.S. Mott Children's Hospital and the Veteran's Administration Hospital in Ann Arbor, and has donated to the ABC International group, which provides quilts to at-risk babies and children.
Each of the quilts has a label on it denoting the givers, and Schneider said she is always pleased whenever the group receives thanks from those who receive their quilts as gifts.
"I had a nice note from one girl's father. He wrote that it was so wonderful that people from other places cared," she said.
The group accepts donations for materials and thread and accepts used sewing machines so quilters can sew at the shop without having to haul the machines in from home. Recently, the group received a large donation of material from Hancock Fabrics of Ann Arbor.
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