Jun 04, 2015


by Julie Druker

Members of the Land O'Lakes Quilters recently presented 16 beautiful hand-made quilts to Jan Easton. Easton is the national vice-president of Quilts of Valour – Canada, an organization whose mission is to ensure that Canadian Armed Forces military personnel and veterans are recognized for their service and commitment to the country by presenting them with quilts by quilters from all across the country

Some of the quilts included special “Hug in a Mug” quilts. For the price of $5 each, quilters purchase commemorative gift mugs containing the materials to construct single blocks for a quilt from Quilts of Valour. The blocks are collected and grouped, and the quilt is then finished off by an appointed volunteer.

Many other gorgeous quilts were created and donated to Quilts of Valour by individuals in the group, which has over 20 members. The quilts were at Pineview Free Methodist Church in Cloyne on May 26.

Quilts of Valour - Canada was started in 2006 in Edmonton, Alberta, when three soldiers recovering from serious injuries they suffered while serving in Afghanistan were each presented with a quilt. Since that time the organization has presented over 6000 quilts to Canadian military personnel who were either injured in the line of duty, or are recovering from post-duty stress, as well as to war veterans across the country.

Easton herself is a professional quilter who owns and operates Stonehouse Quilts in Plainfield, Ontario. She has presented hundreds of donated Quilts of Valour to Canadian military personnel and said that she has received hundreds of emails in return from the recipients, who all have been incredibly moved by them.

“These quilts are very special and mean a lot to the recipients. They are much appreciated simply for the fact that they have been put together by loving hands and are something that the recipients and their family members use and get comfort from every single day.”

Following the presentation to Easton, the quilters also enjoyed a “Trunk Show” presentation by Sue Fiddes, Pesident of the Heritage Quilters Guild in Napanee. Fiddes spoke of her long quilting journey, which started at the age of 18 when she made her first quilt. Fiddes brought 80 quilts with her to the presentation and said that she is a quilter who “loves to try everything” and who “thrives when teaching quilters and seeing their enthusiasm when they finish a project.” Fiddes showed some of her own creations, including a horse head quilt, a raw-edged applique piece that incorporates free form thread painting to create the horse’s mane.

For those who would like to see the Land O' Lakes Quilters' donations to Quilts of Valour, the quilts will be on display at the Trenton Valley Quilters’ Guild show, which will take place at the Community Centre in Brighton, Ontario on Saturday & Sunday, June 6 & 7.

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