Sponsor a Quilt

Did you know that you can sponsor a quilt? Okay, I am not talking directly to all the stitchers who devote their time and fabric to making the beautiful quilts that we present to our injured military members. But have you ever had someone express the wish that they could help with the organization? Maybe your chiropractor or your hairdresser or book club? Do you know of someone who would like to help us reach our goals?

Quilt sponsorship is a fairly easy way to help us to reach our mission of presenting a quilt to every military member who has been injured or made ill as a result of their military service. For $250, the sponsor is acknowledged on the label of the quilt. That donation allows us to purchase fabric that is needed. Stitchers, is there a pattern/fabric collection that you have been eager to try? If you find a sponsor, you and I can go shopping for the fabric that will make that new quilt!

These beautiful flowers are a gift to thank all the piece-makers who are involved in making Quilts of Valour. When Chantal presented a quilt on Monday, the recipient brought her these flowers to express his gratitude to all of the people who make Quilts of Valour possible.

We never know how someone will respond to receiving a quilt, but it is always moving!

Remember back in the pre-Covid days, when we used to gather with our machines for sew-days at the Orleans United Church? Sigh. We will have sew-days again. In the meantime, we can support the OUC by checking out their online Christmas bazaar . Online means no driving in bad weather, no crowds. The bazaar starts October 26.

I hope you will forgive me if I put in a plug for another charity that is near and dear to my heart. TEMBO provides educational sponsorship for girls in rural Tanzania. Right now, TEMBO is running an online auction to raise money to support the girls as they make their way through high school. I hope you’ll check it out. If you want more information about TEMBO, take a wander through the website, or ask me. I love to talk about my time teaching there!

Thank you for all you do. It makes a huge difference to so many lives! If you can think of someone who might like to sponsor a quilt, please send them my way!

Longarmers for hire:

Christine: GREELYQUILTER@GMAIL.COM

Heather:  heather.ann.derksen@gmail.com/www.redwillowquilts.ca

Fall Drop and Swap

Have you set your clocks for this Saturday’s drop and swap? Robbie, Marian and I have a selection of kits ready to sign out. We have Gridlock, Wild Stars, Stashbuster, Tumbling Stones and more. Please drop us an email to let us know what time you can drop by. If you have completed Brave and Bold blocks, or Light in the Window blocks, or Maple Leaf blocks, you can drop those off. Did you complete the kit that you signed out last year? Great! Drop it off so that we can get it quilted. Do you have a fully completed quilt to donate? Wonderful! You can drop those all off at the same time.

Thank you to all of the Ottawa-area stitchers who were so very busy during last winter and spring. July found us with approximately 120 quilts ready to present. More quilts came in over the summer as well. Well, we have been very busy with presentations, and so have the Transition Units, which means that all those quilts have found their way to new homes.

Name & Phone	email address	address
Nancy Arbogast 613-680-4030	nancy.arbogast@quiltsofvalour.ca	672 Gilmour St (Centretown)
Robbie Chapman 613-841-5226	robbiechapman61@gmail.com 	420 Tanager Cres (Orleans)
Marian Rickey	rickeyem@rogers.com	133 Mangrove Cres (Findley Creek)

Longarmers for hire:

Christine: GREELYQUILTER@GMAIL.COM

Heather:  heather.ann.derksen@gmail.com/www.redwillowquilts.ca

Going the distance

Camilla Gallibois and her husband, Mike Brajak, received their QOVs in January of 2020.

Very quickly, Camilla started identifying people who were eligible for quilts, including her cousin, Vincent McKinnon.  The challenge is that Vincent lives in St Augustine Quebec. Check out Google Maps! There are no roads to get there! It is more than 1000 km from Quebec City, across the straits from the northern tip of Newfoundland. 

Camilla and I started planning and originally we were going to ask a detachment of the Canadian Rangers who regularly visit the area on patrols to do the presentation on our behalf.  Then it turns out that a family member was traveling home in June. So, I packaged the quilt with a letter to the presenter to explain how presentations typically work and a letter to Mr McKinnon explaining the quilt and thanking him for his service.  Then, his mother had to be medically evacuated because of heart problems and no-one wanted to proceed without her present. Finally the presentation took place on Thursday September 24.  I am told that it was an emotional day for everyone and Mr McKinnon is very grateful for his quilt. This one took a little more planning and problem-solving than most of our presentations; that makes it a little more special.

Happy Thanksgiving

Well the summer has drifted past us in its typical lazy blur. It seemed especially fleeting this year as we adjusted to the removal of restrictions and the inevitable retightening of those same restrictions.

On behalf of QOVC (Ottawa) Robbie, Chantal, Jill and I tried to complete as many presentations as we could — outside in the sunshine or dodging the raindrops. We conducted 67 quilt presentations in backyards, front-yards, beside monuments and on porches. We also left 45 quilts with the Transition Units to be presented to eligible recipients who are in the process of leaving the military.

Thank you to all the stitchers who took on the Maple Leaf blocks. I have received a number of individual blocks and some finished quilt tops. If you have some ready, you can drop those off at one of the drop-off spots that I will mention later in this post. Let’s collect those leaves and create some wonderful quilts!

Well, Mr Watson and Mr Ford and Dr Tam and Ottawa Health Services are all in agreement that we need to stay inside and avoid gatherings (since when do that many political figures agree??). That means that there will be no Fall Quilt bee 😦 , which is very disappointing. We will have an opportunity to sign out kits to get you started on your next QOV quilt tops. On Saturday October 17 you can sign out and pick up kits at one of three designated points. To maintain physical distancing, please email or call the point person to set a time when you can drop by. Please note that not all kits will be available at all locations.

Name & Phone	email address	address
Nancy Arbogast 613-680-4030	nancy.arbogast@quiltsofvalour.ca	672 Gilmour St (Centretown)
Robbie Chapman 613-841-5226	robbiechapman61@gmail.com	420 Tanager Cres (Orleans)
Marian Rickey	rickeyem@rogers.com	133 Mangrove Cres (Findley Creek)

QOVC has revamped their website and it is looking wonderful.. There are many photos of presentations and of our recipients when they were in the field. There is also a nomination form. If you know of someone who meets the eligibility for a QOV, please fill in the form so that we can reach more of our veterans and serving members.

Thank you for all that you do to support and comfort our injured and ill military members. I am grateful for the opportunity to connect recipients with their quilts, to represent you and to see our quilts go to homes where they will make a difference. Let’s keep quilting!

Longarmers for hire:

Christine: GREELYQUILTER@GMAIL.COM

Heather:  heather.ann.derksen@gmail.com/www.redwillowquilts.ca