Although there are many great causes/charities I donate to, I wanted to extend my passion for quilting in a way that would help others. The London Friendship Quilters Guild reaches out to our community and beyond through the donation of quilted items to four main organizations plus special projects—all quilting for a good cause.
Big Quilting Bee To Celebrate Canada’s 150th Birthday
In this special project, many quilters across Canada joined the Big Quilting Bee to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday. Canadian quilters donated their time to make slab blocks 12.5 x 12.5 inches. Others quilt the finished quilt tops put together by the guild members. (Quilt top kits include batting, backing and binding material)
The goal of the Big Quilting Bee is to make and donate 1,000 quilts for kids at Ronald McDonald Houses across Canada! Now that’s Quilting For A Good Cause.
Each slab must have at least one piece of Canada’s 150th fabric to commemorate Canada’s birthday. Below are three blocks I made with Canadian fabric I received at the Quilting Guild and some fun leftover fabrics I had on hand.
You are my Sunshine block, using a touch of red and white Canadian fabric to frame the center piece.
The Children’s Aid Society
The kids’ quilts are given to the Children’s Aid Society for their young clients. These quilts are usually 40″-50″ (102-127 cm) wide by 50″-60″ (127-152 cm) long. I enjoy quilting for the children, knowing receiving their very own quilt will give them more than a quilt. It will give them the gift of knowing someone cared enough to comfort them in their time of need. Many of these children come from abusive homes and are taken out of the home for their safety.
Rotholme Women’s And Family Shelter
Both kids’ and adult quilts and pillowcases are donated to Rotholme Women’s and Family Shelter. The adult quilts are bigger than the kids, but twin bed size is the most common size donated.
Quilts Of Valour
These special quilts are made for the injured military personnel and veterans. They must be a minimum of 50″ x 70″ (127-178cm) to a maximum of 72″ x 96″ (183 x 244 cm). They give great comfort and are received with much appreciation.
Meals On Wheels
The guild donates place mats to the local Meals On Wheels each December. These are given to their clients along with their Christmas meals.
Comfort Quilts For The Guild Members
Giving back to the members in their time of need, comfort quilts are made to give to a guild member who is experiencing life-changing or life-threatening events or illness. These would include but are not limited to accidents and major illnesses such as cancer, stroke, heart attack, or mental health crisis. As well as illnesses, these quilts will be available to any member who is suffering the loss of a significant other in their life, including but not limited to a parent, spouse, child, grandchild, or sibling.
The guild members make the Friendship Star blocks that go into the quilts. They are assembled into quilt tops on group sewing days, then quilted, bound and ready for gifting.
All quilts for organizations, special projects, and comfort quilts are made of 100% cotton fabrics and have many hours of Quilting For A Good Cause.