4 minute read
Stitching Together Community Through Service, Friendship
Westerville Quilt Guild celebrates 20 years
Just over 20 years ago, a handful of residents who were passionate about the art of quilting made a plan to launch a quilt guild in Westerville. They reserved a small room at the Westerville Public Library for their first meeting, only expecting 20 or so attendees. Much to their surprise, the room was filled to the brim with quilters. It was a standing-room-only event.
Today, the Westerville Quilt Guild has 30 active members and supports a wide variety of programs. The group is designed to be informal and friendly, where members know each other on a personal level. Life-long friendships, ingenuity, innovation and community service continue to be the driving forces of the guild.
Threads of Connection
Janice Baer, a 13-year member of the guild, is a fourth-generation quilter. Before she began the art, she remembers standing with her mother and sister, impatiently rolling her eyes, waiting on them to select fabrics for a quilt. Several years later, when heading into retirement, she used skills learned in her youth from making clothing, took out her sewing machine and started quilting. Baer’s first quilt made multiple 400-mile trips back and forth to Pennsylvania, with her mother providing guidance. Her mother was quick to remind her, with a wink and smile, of her eye rolls in their early fabric shopping days.
Baer’s sister still lives in Pennsylvania and quilting is a way to stay connected with her. The personal connection to her family and the friendships she has made along the way resonate with Baer and are among the most meaningful in her life.
“I have one sister by birth, but many quilting sisters. We laugh together and support each other through those hard times,” said Baer. “I'm extremely grateful for all of them.”
A Patchwork of Ingenuity and Creativity
Sue Meek, a 10-year member of the Westerville Quilt Guild, enjoys the traditions of ingenuity, imagination and skill in the art of quilt making. For hundreds of years, quilters have been discovering new and novel techniques, which is still happening today.
Meek's daughter requested a traditional “double ring” wedding quilt for her nuptials, and wanted it to reflect the color scheme of her wedding. This was an easy request for Meek, but at the time, COVID-19 was running rampant across the world. In an effort to make her daughter’s request a reality while observing social distancing rules, she sent her daughter to the paint swatch section of the hardware store to select paint swatches that matched her color scheme. Meek then took those swatches to the fabric store to color match her fabric selections.
“I sent the paint swatch tip, one I thought was just a fun tip, to a quilting magazine and I actually got published," said Meek.
Her creative solution was published in April 2021 by American Patchwork and Quilting magazine. Meek is now setting her sights on her next project–a baby quilt for her first grandchild.
Sewing for Service
Christina Sidebottom, a member for 17 years, has been sewing since she was 4 years old. After meeting her husband Stephen, she moved to the United States from England and was curious about learning the art of quilt making. Sidebottom’s husband was supportive of her hobby from the very beginning.
“No matter where we went in the world, Stephen always found a quilt shop for me, even in Japan,” said Sidebottom.
The camaraderie with fellow quilters is important, but Sidebottom finds the community service projects that the guild takes part in the most meaningful. The projects support various organizations and range from sewing quilts for 4th Trimester at The Ohio State University and youth campers at Flying Horse Farm to patriotic lap quilts for Honor Flight veterans.
The Honor Flight service project is one close to Sidebottom's heart. Her husband, a veteran, made a presentation to the guild, encouraging them to support the cause. He later died from complications of COVID-19 at the height of the pandemic.
“We made about 40 quilts, namely for a group of all female veterans in Pennsylvania on an Honor Flight trip. It’s a real standout moment for me,” said Sidebottom.
The Westerville Quilt Guild has produced hundreds of quilts and other items for charitable organizations and receives many notes of thanks and gratitude from recipients of their quilts.
“One of the comments on the notes we repeatedly get from the young gals at 4th Trimester is how much it means to get something handmade,” said Baer.
The Westerville Quilt Guild meets the fourth Tuesday of every month at 7 p.m. at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Westerville. For more information about the guild or to inquire about becoming a new member, visit www.WestervilleQuiltGuild.com.
