Quilting Guild makes covers for families rebuilding after house fires and hurricanes.
By: Rebecca Weltmann
There’s nothing better on these cold winter nights than a cozy, comfy quilt.
Perhaps the next best thing is to gather with a few like-minded people and make a quilt which is what the Hillsborough Library Quilting Guild did last week at its monthly meeting.
"I like the idea of socializing with other quilters and getting to know them," Hillsborough resident Anna Benitz said. "You exchange ideas, and there’s always something new to learn."
The Hillsborough Library Quilting Guild had its first meeting in October. Since its inception, it has blossomed into a group of more than 20 women who meet at the Hillsborough Public Library.
With oversized shopping bags and Ziploc bags full of colorful fabrics and works-in-progress, the women at the quilting guild not only enjoy each other’s company, but enjoy each other’s support through their work as well.
"I love seeing the designs come together," Ms. Benitz said. "There are some quilt blocks that you can put together in a myriad of ways and not have the same quilt. It’s rare that you can repeat yourself. I just love seeing the pieces come together into something fantastic."
She added that most quilters would rather make quilts for other people than for themselves. The guild in Hillsborough is no exception.
When the guild first started gathering, several of its members joined an effort to make quilts for displaced people and families affected by Hurricane Katrina.
"It was just horrible and heart-wrenching to see what those people were going through," said Hillsborough resident and member of the guild Debbie Kalenty. "Most quilters are very generous people and like to do things for others."
Ms. Kalenty is the owner and operator of an on-line business, Quilter’s Obsession. She contacted her suppliers and other quilt stores in the area to help donate fabric. The effort began over a year ago, but that didn’t deter the guild in Hillsborough from jumping right in to help out.
To date, Ms. Kalenty said the group has helped to send 26 quilts to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Biloxi, in Mississippi, with another eight or so in various stages of work. Now, she added, the diocese is sending back photographs of the quilts with their new owners.
"We like to make quilts for other people," she said. "People tend to collect fabric; it’s either extra fabric left over, or they’ve changed their mind and don’t know how they’re going to use it. People bring in what they have, what they want to donate and we cut it up into kits and then people sew them together to make the quilts."
The Quilter’s Guild hopes to make an effort to donate quilts to other charities as well. At the Jan. 18 meeting, the women decided to start putting together quilt-making kits for charities dealing with children, and to make a few extra to keep on hand in the community in case they are needed in the event of an emergency.
The guild isn’t only for those who know how to quilt. Both Ms. Kalenty and Ms. Benitz said they encourage those with a wide range of skills to attend the group meetings.
"We’re looking for more people to come and you don’t have to know how to quilt," Ms. Benitz said. "You just have to have a desire to learn or even just appreciate the beauty and workmanship of quilts. We’re welcoming people who are interested in quilting whether they do it or not."
Twelve years ago, Ms. Benitz cross-stitched a teddy bear design. When her daughter announced that she was expecting a new baby to the family, Ms. Benitz decided to turn the cross-stitched design into a baby’s quilt.
The rest, she said, is history.
The new group is working out well for Ms. Benitz. For 12 years, she has enjoyed the pleasures and joys that come with watching shapes and colors come together to form a quilt.
The Hillsborough Library Quilting Guild meets on the third Thursday of every month. Its next meeting will be 7 p.m. Feb. 15 in the Hillsborough library. For more information, call 369-2200 ext. 19.