St. Mary's Guild
The Guild of St. Mary
Working under the auspices of the Episcopal Church Women of Grace, the Guild of St. Mary gathers on most Saturdays of each month to sew, quilt, crochet and knit. There are several components to the guild that make it integral to the life of our parish and an example of the many different and creative ways we do ministry and outreach at Grace Memorial.
We make blankets to give to those who need them.
Since 2003, we have been making quilts and blankets to give to Bradley Angle House, a program that provides shelter and related services for women and children escaping domestic violence. During 2011 St. Mary’s Guild delivered 4 boxes of refurbished (carefully mended, finished, and/or cleaned) quilts and blankets. After a special blessing during the 10:00 am service on December 11, thirty-seven new and unique quilts and blankets were presented to Bradley Angle just in time for Christmas.
We sponsor the quilt project for Grace’s annual Grace Art Faire & Holiday Bazaar.
This quilt project is a multi-faceted work of art involving collaboration and creative challenge. It is raffled off at the December Faire and the revenue is used to support a variety of outreach programs critical to the life of the parish and the communities we serve. The 2011 opportunity quilt – “The Japan Quilt” – began as a prayerful response to the earthquakes and tsunamis in Japan. This collaborative effort features a contemporary Japanese design using Japanese-themed fabrics with long-arm quilting by Pat Roche. Half of the proceeds, approximately $600, was sent to assist ongoing recovery efforts in Japan through Mercy Corps and its Japanese partner Peace Winds.
We treasure our connection with one another.
Getting together to work on joint projects or on our own tasks in the company of others who represent a wide range of age groups is a great blessing and joy. Some members knit, some crochet and most quilt. Our work is offered as a prayer. We meet most Saturdays barring schedule conflicts in the Grace House Fibre Studio. St. Mary’s welcomes women of all ages and skill levels to join us! Ongoing lessons in quiltmaking are part of each gathering.
Our work has been greatly assisted by donated materials. (We do welcome donations of 100% cotton fabrics…) Cash donations are used to purchase additional supplies such as thread, quilt batting and backing fabric.
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