Charity Quilts

Let’s talk a little bit about Charity Quilts.  I’m not talking about the quilts friends and family members want you to make for free “because you love making them and gosh, you have so much fabric you need to get rid of.”

Nope.

I am talking about those quilts quilters make and give to those folks who truly need a tangible hug to wrap themselves up in when there’s no one around to give them a two-armed one.  I’m talking about the quilts we give out of the compassion of our hearts because we do truly care about folks and the circumstances they’re going through.  These are the charity quilts I would like to highlight in this week’s blog.

Quilters, as a whole, are some of the most giving people I’ve ever met.  If you remember, when I decided I wanted to learn to quilt, it was not because I necessarily wanted to make quilts.  It was the quilters who were pouring themselves into me that made me want to take up the needle and follow them.  I needed more of that and them in my life.  We make quilts for folks we love who are getting married or are having babies.  We make quilts for birthdays and remembrances.  However, when someone we love is having a difficult time, we also tend to give a quilt or two to those folks.  Most quilt guilds/groups have an active charity quilt program.  It’s part of their mission statement (written or not) to help out groups by donating quilts.  My guild donates chemo quilts to our local cancer center.  Since 2012, we’ve given out over 1,400. 

These are the charity quilts I’m talking about.  And while quilters have given away quilts almost since the first stitch was put in a three-layered coverlet, charity quilts hit their stride in the early part of the nineteenth century.  These charity quilts were raffled, and the money was used to start libraries, support Sunday Schools, help abolitionists, and sponsor missionaries.  They were the backbone of many ladies’ aid societies and in the late part of the nineteenth century they were raffled to help support the Union Army.  World War I turned quilters’ attention to a national effort and quilts were made to keep soldiers warm, as well as raffle off to support “our boys in uniform.”

Today there are all kinds of programs that eagerly accept charity quilts.  Two of the most well-known are Project Linus (which also accepts knitted and crocheted blankets) and Quilts of Valor.  Ronald McDonald House, St. Jude, and the Shriners also accept quilts and Habitat for Humanity loves to have quilts for their new homeowners.  These are nationally known organizations, and your quilts may not stay in your community.  They may be sent out to others area which  needs them more than yours. If you’d rather have your quilts stay in your community, contact your local law enforcement agencies and the Red Cross.  Often an officer would appreciate a few quilts to keep in their vehicle for folks they may need to remove from a bad situation.  The Red Cross will take them to give to people who have had to leave their homes due to fire, flood, or other natural disasters.  The Social Services may appreciate them for foster kids.  Local hospitals may want them for cancer patients or small quilts for NICU units.  The list is honestly endless. 

However, as you’re looking into local agencies to donate your quilts to, be sure to do a few things first.  Don’t show up unannounced without an appointment and proceed to drop off quilts.  Call them first.  Explain what you do – you’re a quilter and you make quilts.  You want to donate those quilts; would the agency accept them?  Most of the time you’re going to receive an enthusiastic “Yes!”  Then ask if they have any restrictions – do the quilts need to be a certain size, can they have embellishment, etc.  Many organizations will have a few rules, usually concerning dimensions.  Quilts of Valor is a bit pickier, but it’s primarily about colors (they want red, white, and blue in the quilts for a patriotic theme since the quilt recipients are veterans).  Set a date you can drop the quilts off and get a contact name along with the contact’s email address and phone number. 

Let me also add this here.  If you call an organization and you suspect the quilts may not be used in the way you want (for example, sold instead of given to folks who need them), it’s okay to walk away if that bothers you.  Charity quilts, as with any other quilt you give away, should be released without second thoughts on your part.  If anything bothers you in the conversations you have with the organization, you are free to back away and find another place to donate your quilts.

Due to my work schedule, I don’t make as many charity quilts as I would like during the year.  After I retire, I hope to make one a month.  However, charity quilts are great stash busters (a bonus for you) and they don’t have to be super-complicated.  Half-square triangles, flying geese, square-in-a-square, or simple charm blocks sewn together can constitute a charity quilt.  I have about three super-easy quilt patterns I use for my charity quilts, and I know from memory how to cut my scraps for these quilts.  When I have enough block units cut out, I load up the Netflix, Hulu, or podcasts I want and spend a productive Friday night churning out a quilt top.  I straight-line quilt them with a walking foot, bind them, put a label on it and toss it in the washer (most places do want the quilts washed before you deliver them).  Then it’s ready to go. 

Some quilters may cringe at the simplicity of this process.  “Where’s the challenge?  How are those quilts going to make you a better quilter?”  Well, chances are they may not make you a better quilter, but they will make you a better person.  You’re giving of your time, materials, and skills.  And the recipients of those quilts don’t care if the quilt has taken Best of Show in Paducah.  All they know is someone cared enough about them to make them a quilt – a tangible, quilty hug for them to have when they’re all alone or scared.  Let me throw in that while they may not care about the lack of ribbons, they also may not know how to take care of the quilt.  I really like how my guild handles this.  Angie, the person over our Charity Quilt program, came up with the idea to have two labels on the quilt.  One tells the receiver the guild made the quilt, and we love them.  The second label has care instructions.  She has those labels pre-printed for us so all we do is sew them on.  You may want to think about doing something similar.  I do think a label works better than attaching a note – which could be lost. 

One final thought concerning charity quilts, and this doesn’t concern the recipients.  It concerns you.  The maker.  The quilter.  Do you ever think about what charity quilts give back to you?  I’m not talking about them reducing your stash or providing a great way to practice your quilting on either on your domestic machine or long arm.  I’m not even referencing the Biblical verse “It’s better to give than to receive.”  Nope.  It’s something even more personal and the only way I can explain it is to give a few examples.

In 2018, my daughter was diagnosed with cervical cancer.  We all were frightened and bewildered.  My guild, knowing what we were going through, handed me a quilt one night after our monthly meeting for Meagan to have as she navigated surgery and follow up.  It was white and teal – the colors for cervical cancer.  Those ladies didn’t have to be that attentive to detail, but they were.  That quilt – despite being hauled back and forth to the hospital, and wrapping two young granddaughters in warmth and love when their mother couldn’t – still is prominently on display at her home in Clemmons, it’s “good vibes” still gracing them with love.  Meagan remains cancer free.

My brother was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma in 2021.  Not being able to help much in any way other than pray and quilt, I made him a quilt out of University of North Carolina t-shirts.  It was as much a coping mechanism for me (because I could do nothing to help him but pray as I stitched) as it was a gift for him to show him how much he means to me.  I put the last stitch of binding in the quilt, loaded it in the car, and drove to Burlington.  I handed it off to him, we shed a few tears and a few hugs and life went on.  A stem cell transplant and follow up care later and now he’s cancer free.  This year, his birthday post to me on Facebook featured the quilt.  I had no idea it meant that much to him.

Probably the very first personal charity quilt I made was for my cousin, Kemp.  Kemp was diagnosed with Follicular Lymphoma, a non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, over eight years ago.  He was part of the Naval Reserve.  To honor that, I made him a red, white, and blue chemo quilt to take with him for treatments.  Which he did, and later my aunt told me the quilt kept him warm; the treatment room was chilly.  He went into remission and out of it.  After a series of chemo treatments this summer, he was once again pronounced cancer free. However, life often holds twists we’d rather not take, and this fall he developed a cough.  The cough turned to Covid Pneumonia and a whole bunch of other things which complicated his already-tenuous immune system.  On December 8, he passed away. 

My brother had a part in Kemp’s eulogy.  In that, Eric mentioned if the family had to take a vote on who was the favorite cousin, Kemp would win.  And the testament to that was the number of cousins and relatives who helped fill nearly the entire front of the chapel.  My aunt and her family had some of Kemp’s favorite things displayed in the visitation room.  His motorcycle jacket.  His Bible.  Some pictures from the past and others taken recently…and the quilt I made him so long ago.   Despite the grief I felt, I was glad something I made brought him some kind of joy, comfort, and maybe even relief.   I hope my aunt has the quilt and it’s now bringing her some kind of comfort as she grieves for her son – that the tangible warmth from it is like a hug from Kemp.

I wanted to tell you these three stories for one reason:  It’s important to remember your charity quilts do not stop with whoever receives them.  No.  The love, the need to make the quilt to try to ease some kind of suffering life unfairly hands us, goes on to other people.  When you make a quilt for someone, it doesn’t stop with that person.  It goes on.

To remind folks of hard-fought battles and hard-won victories.

To remind people how much you care.

To comfort those who are left behind.

Something to think about in 2024. 

From my studio to yours.

Love and Stitches,

Sherri and Felix