Friday 20 December 2013

Caring With Quilts.................

Finally I can say the Caring with Quilts project is all but done..................one quilt left to deliver.......done....
I meant to post an update in August but as you know August and September disappeared for me and not sure who stole October and here we are well into November December..............
It all started back here on Australia Day...............
I've included some pics of my travels............many trips into the fire area..............it was such a huge area I broke it down into smaller areas/roads to deliver the quilts to everyone............days of quilt delivery were held with Chris, Sue, Liz and Janette as travelling partners on various days.......
I cannot describe how special it was to be able to deliver the quilts that you sent to me and the CWA for delivery.
Many hugs, some tears, a few cuppas etc..............
It was wonderful to personally deliver these quilts as some people had not "qualified" for much assistance..............
We were so pleased to receive so many quilts we were able to deliver quilts to every property that was affected by the fires......this resulted in many many families being assisted..........and a few other special people we found along the way.......
quilts ready for delivery .......
piles of quilts ready for sorting and packing................so many sizes, styles, colours etc
A gorgeous lady who I met from St Aidans at Exeter who delievered a bundle of quilt..........
pictured with Chris holding up some of the quilts they made.......
Above months after the fire a shed destroyed by fire.............grasses returned but not much green on the hills................
naked mountains reveal amazing scenes/rock formations we have not see before............
members of the CWA held a morning tea for one of the members and her husband who lost their home..........
a large group of ladies from Walgett joined us that day delivering a big bundle of quilts............

on a very cold day this recipient was very happy to receive a quilt for her and a neighbour
3 gorgeous happy little girls................
Early one morning i met Chris for a coffee before a big quilt delivery day and she gave me 4 quilts that she had pieced and quilted herself.............
I didn't have any streets etc to deliver too..........everyone was on a farm or hobby farm........so local knowledge was essential......
a lucky boy home sick for the day got to pick his own quilt.........I saw him again the other day with his Mum and she said he loves it...............
very late one afternoon we made it to the top of Siding Springs Observatory to deliver quilts to the permanent residents who work there...............it was freezing cold and very windy but the sun was setting and it was stunning................
very hazzy out towards the plains..........and the Caretaker was telling us how they were seeing so many big eagles since the fires......Liz who was delivering with me snapped this pic..........

Now the problem I had - a good problem might I add is that you were all so generous I had too many quilts for children under 5yrs. There was very few in the area I had to deliver to so they had been sitting in the Chookshed waiting for me to make a decision............sadly that came with the terrible fires in the Blue Mountains........I saw Rainbow Preschool at Winmalee on the TV..........
they had terrible damage at the preschool......lucky they didn't lose the building but only just.........it was very close to the back door and completely destroyed all the children's play area out the back............
The day I called in they had just got the soil samples back and everything was going ahead the day after I was there restoring the play area.........(I got the pic below from there FB page the next day)
Photo: The transformation begins!
These are some of the children from the preschool...........8 children lost there homes but I had nearly enough quilts for all the kids........Joan the Director a lovely lady was so thankful.............they still had 12 children at the preschool when they had to evacuate in a fire truck with great urgency....the fire came thru very fast.....but I was happy for all the children to receive a quilt as driving into the preschool the whole area is fire affected.............the children will never forget this........they couldn't go outside to there play area............
 A sign they have hanging out the front.........says it all really............
So to anyone who supported the project the
Baradine CWA "Caring with Quilts"
THANKYOU
the people who have received the quilts
THANK YOU  for caring
we have received some amazing thankyou letters............
Just one suggestion.............if making quilts to donate make it big enough (50x50) most of the recipients who lost there homes wanted to put them on there beds to make things look nice
Also make them uni sex/age as I struggled to have enough quilts for men and also older boys......unless you know specifically what you are making for........
2014 I would like to make a quilt or 2 for a cause....yet to find the cause or need but I am sure that will develop............
THANKYOU
Catch you later
Chookyblue

41 comments:

Diane-crewe said...

what a wonderful and positive post x so glad it all worked out xxand you had .. so many quilts xx

creations.1 said...

Congratulations on a job well done Chooky - a huge project that so many benefitted from!

Unknown said...

Fabulous job Chooky. Well done to everyone. Sharyn:)

Sue SA said...

Well done, its a much longer and involved process then any of us imagined. Glad the pre school kids got the extra quilts. In all my charity quilting groups (in NSW and SA) I have also been told by the allocator of quilts that teenage boys followed by men are the hardest to find a appropriate quilt for. So I will start channelling my inner teen youth for the next few charity quilts!

Fiona said...

a very moving post Chooky.... how lovely to share so many quilts...
Hugz

Wendy said...

How wonderful Chooky! So glad that you had more than enough and that the people who needed them can now be comfy under a quilt given with much love.

Brenda said...

Amazing effort by you and everyone who contributed. You should be proud. I'll make a teenage boy quilt to have on hand next year.

Julia said...

Lovely post Chooky.
Warms the heart to see the smiling faces as they receive their quilts....you can see they appreciate them so much.
Well done to everyone.
Julia ♥

KERYN B said...

Bless you Chooky what an amazing person you and your friends are. You embody the true meaning of Christmas.

Salley said...

Unbelievable community spirit. Congratulations Chooky on giving these people a smile, with your terrific organisational powers. . . .and . . .thats a lot of driving!

Michelle Ridgway said...

Beautiful post. Congrats to everyone concerned in providing all those lovely quilts. Love reading your blog and I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and an easier and less fraught 2014 xx

Lisa V said...

Well done, what an amazing achievement! Such community spirit and soo uplifting. Merry Christmas.

One for a wish.. said...

What a fantastic effort by all involved! Sounds like you've done the "hard yards" there, Chookyblue, but what a great result!

Narelle said...

Very heart-warming post xx

Marilyn said...

Thank you for this post, Chooky. Having too many quilts is a good problem to have, and there seems to always be an area that can use the "leftovers". So lovely that they went to the preschool children. Thank you too for all your organising and delivering.

Bev C said...

Hello Donna,

Congratulations to everyone involved. I think the photo of the three little girls smiling says it all.

Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Bev.

Lynda said...

Thanks for this Chooky - what a great reminder of how easy it is to help people to start feeling good again.

Kerry @ Cottage on the Hill said...

What an amazing effort for you to deliver all those quilts to everyone, well done. Iam sure they will all be loved

Yvonne W said...

Thank you for organising the collection and then the delivery of the quilts. I am sure they were all greatly appreciated.
Have a lovely Christmas and Best wishes for 2014.

Susan said...

Thanks for the update Chooky - it was a massive effort and I am so glad those extras went to the Blue Mountains. Unfortunately the need for more quilts will happen - all too soon.

Jewells said...

Quilters are very generous & caring people. This proves it!

jfoster8 said...

Well done...let me know if you need a hand with the quilting side of things...would love to help..

loulee said...

What wonderful heart-warming stories to come out of something so terrible. Everyone deserves a medal, especially those who helped with delivery.

Anita said...

Thank you for all your hard work. And thank you for the 3 quilts for my friends brothers family who lost their home xx

Susan said...

And thank you for your wonderful inspiration and ability to organise. Loved being part of it. X

Noela said...

Wonderful post Chooky. You are one remarkable lady. Hugs.......

Bernie Morris said...

You are lovely and kind Chooky in the grip of drought yourself driving and delivering over many miles all those quilts to the people.

Anonymous said...

Well done to everyone and such a great cause

Maria said...

What a wonderful post Chooky..Sew nice to see the smiles on the folks faces even though they had lost sew much..
Great work ladies in delivering the quilts.

Raewyn said...

Amazing post, what a lot of wonderful work you have done this year. MErry Christmas to you and your family.

Sharm said...

Well done on a great job!

Sharm said...

Well done on a great job!

Queen Of The Armchair aka Dzintra Stitcheries said...

Congratulations Chooky....this is a beautiful post it brought tears to my eyes!

jude's page said...

Well done for delivering all these, just another job, and adding to your already busy life. Lovely story.

Kris Meares - Tag Along Teddies said...

Hey Donna! Thanks for doing this great follow-up post to the quilt collection for the folks affected by fire in your part of the world. What a huge job you and your fellow collectors/distributors did to get these love-filled quilts to their new owners. Having been involved in a similar quilt drive following our floods a couple of years ago, I know how much work goes in behind the scenes ... and I know how wonderful it is to pass on quilts to remind people they're wrapped in love and care ... WELL DONE!!! Bear Hugs! KRIS

cityquilter grace said...

how fortunate you are to have been the messenger for this project....bless you! and ps we are enjoying australian lamb for our holiday dinner!

DAWNIE said...

This was such a good read and it is great to see where some of the quilts have finished up and how happy the recipients are. Well dine for organising, was great to be part of it.

Solstitches said...

What a lovely post. So nice to see the picture of you with the children.
You are a wonder woman with all that you do for others.
Margaret

Andrea Johnson said...

Wow, fantastic. An endeavor in the truest spirit of Christmas.

Nicky said...

Fabulous post, thankyou for all the effort you put in to making it happen, it couldn't have happened without you! You're a treasure...

Farmyard Stitches said...

That is so amazing, Chooky! Well done on your hard work! I know that everyone will so appreciate their quilts and the love that goes along with it!!