Quilting from the Heart has reached a milestone.
On Tuesday, Oct. 4, the group gave out its 1,000th quilt to Barrhead’s Healthy Families Healthy Futures.
Aurelia Spronk, spokesperson for Quilting from the Heart, said the group was spawned by an unfortunate tragedy in the community.
“There was an apartment fire eight years ago here in Barrhead, and a group of us got together to make quilts for the people who were impacted by the fire,” she said, adding the group received so much satisfaction from their efforts they decided to continue making quilts and giving them to deserving individuals. Healthy Families Healthy Futures is a non-profit organization that offers a number of services to strengthen families in Westlock, Athabasca and Barrhead. The group, which has upwards of 25 members, gets together on average twice a month. At any given time, the group has 70 to 80 quilts on the go in a wide variety of sizes and themes.
“A lot of it depends on the type of fabric we have,” Spronk said, adding the majority of the materials come as donations from the community. “The only thing that isn’t donated usually is the batting, which we buy ourselves through our fundraisers.”
As for who is eligible for a quilt, Spronk said, early on the groups decided that they had to be local, within the town or county area of Barrhead and Westlock.
“We work primarily through word of mouth and give our quilts to anyone we are aware of that are going through a rough time or just needs an extra hug,” she said, adding one of the caveats is that a person cannot request a quilt for themselves. “It has to be from a referral by somebody else in the community.” Quilting from The Heart also works with various community agencies such as social services, Healthy Families Healthy Futures, The Ripple Connection Support Centre, The Lighthouse, Barrhead and District FCSS and the senior care homes. Spronk noted that they also give each foster child who enters the region a quilt.
“All we are given is the child’s age and if they are a boy or girl,” she said, adding the group has the making of a quilt down to an informal assembly line. “We have people working on the backing, stitching squares and sandwiching everything together.”
When the quilt is complete the group then gives it to the person or group who referred the individual. “There is a little card on each of the quilts that says it is made by ‘Quilting from the Heart’, but the people who made the quilt are never named,” Spronk said. Erin Kuric, home visitor for Healthy Families Healthy Futures, said she was pleased to accept the gift of the 1,000th quilt, which was actually part of a larger donation of four quilts that will be used by two families as part of its Home Visitation program.
“It’s an advocacy program for first time moms, young families, people who just need a little extra support,” she said. “We can work on parenting skills, provide one-to-one counselling and help people find the resources they need.”
For more information about Quilting from the Heart or to suggest an individual in need, contact Spronk at 780-674-5313.
