Quilters from various parts of East Tennessee joined together Friday morning at Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church for the Village Quilters Guild’s biannual luncheon to talk about upcoming events and service opportunities in Loudon and Monroe counties.
Throughout the church, quilts of every size, shape, color and pattern were on display.
Some of the quilts were winners from the national Keepsake Quilting Challenge, while others were creations from guild members.
“The Keepsake Quilting Challenge is a national traveling show,” Catherine Peterson, member of the Village Quilters, said.
First- and second-place winning quilts from the Keepsake Quilting Challenge were sent from the Keepsake Quilting store to be viewed during the Village Quilters’ luncheon.
“They’re beautiful quilts from quilters around the nation for all of us to enjoy,” Sharon Blanton, committee member, said.
The Village Quilters Guild will be having its own quilt show, advertised as the Marketplace Boutique, in the fall.
“On Oct. 11 and 12 our quilts will be for sale,” Rose Hunt, president of the guild, said. “Everything is hand made by all of us.”
The theme of the show is “Jewels of Tennessee” and items such as pillows, handbags and clothing will be sold in addition to quilts.
Proceeds from the Marketplace Boutique will go toward hiring professional quilters to speak at meetings and other future guild events.
The largest quilt shown at the Village Quilters luncheon measured 135 inches by 133 inches and was created as a community service project for Katerpillar Kids Camp. Covenant Hospice runs Katerpillar Kids Camp for children ages 6-18 who are grieving the death of a family member.
Each attendee of the camp decorates a quilt square in honor of a loved one, and this year the Village Quilters Guild sewed the pieces together.
“The women were told not to read the blocks, but they did, and there were tears all around,” Carolyn Hampson, community service outreach committee member for the guild, said.
Beginning July 24, nine quilts that have been made from Katerpillar Kids Camp squares will be exhibited at the Knoxville Museum of Art until the end of August.
“Children grieve differently, and this is another outlet for more creative kids,” Katie McLaughlin, Covenant Hospice employee and Katerpillar Kids Camp counselor, said. “Some of them pour their heart and soul into it.”
In the last year, the Village Quilters Guild has donated 92 quilts to various local organizations.
“The community service group does this for organizations across Loudon and Monroe counties, wherever there is a need,” Blanton said. “They have given over 3,000 quilts.”
“We send a lot of quilts to Fort Loudoun Hospital, and Branches Women Shelter in Madisonville. We’ve also done fundraisers for Monroe County Animal Shelter,” Hampson said.
The Village Quilters’ community service outreach program relies heavily on business donations and donations from community members for fabric to make their donated quilts.
Currently, 309 members are in the Village Quilters Guild and 136 of those members attended the luncheon.
Hunt said her favorite part of being in the guild is the friendships made from the common interest in quilting. “This is our quilting family,” she said.
