One of the local parishes, St. George's, has a group of women that comes together each week to create quilts. They've been gathering each week for over 15 years!

I joined the group in the spring of 2001. Though I've done a lot of sewing and various forms of needlework since I was a child, I didn't have a lot of experience with quilting. And because I am not a member of St. George's parish, I was just not sure how I was going to fit in.

But these ladies are remarkable, kind, loving ... and give newcomers just the right amount of grief! Their ribbing and humor helped me feel at home in no time. The median age of our group is about 72 years old! For the time being, I'm the youngest member. And our most senior member is happy to announce that she just turned 93!

We make the quilts in assembly line fashion. I cut the fabric. Three or four members are the designated folks that lay out the design. Another three or four ladies do the machine sewing. And a large group finishes the quilts by tying them with yarn.

The St. George's Quilters give each child that is baptized into the community a new quilt. The rest of the quilts go to people in need and are distributed through the local Food Bank, the ambulance service, senior citizen centers and retirement villages.

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