Quilts for the homeless

BELOVED QUILTS in HAWAII!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 03:00:00 +0000

I'm so thrilled to announce that we now have a Beloved Quilts: Honolulu sew-in team! Wow! Robyn Morse has started the team out there and they are having there very first sew-in today! I'm so excited! Go Robyn and team!

Our next sew-in is March 14th from 12-6 in the Chapel of the Cambridge Site of the Greater Boston Vineyard. Hope to see you there!
Blessings,
Pascha

Valentines Day Sew-In!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:24:00 +0000

Come Sew-In the LOVE!
Valentines Day sew-in! 12-6pm
Chapel of the Greater Boston Vineyard
Directions:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/
No sewing experience required! Free sewing lessons for coming!
Bring your Sewing Machine!
If you'd like, bring a blanket to turn into a beloved quilt!
We accept donations of fabric, thread, sewing machines, money, blankets, and notions!
Spread the love!
Bring your friends who could use to feel some REAL LOVE on Valentines Day!
questions: please email: paschamg@gmail.com

Quilts for Children Rescued from Human Trafficking

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:16:00 +0000

Our next beneficiary of quilts will be children living in safe-homes after being rescued from a life of slavery as prostitutes. So, these children aren't exactly homeless- but since they've been trafficked away from their families and lived pretty tough lives in brothels against their will, well, I'm including them as an important group of people who are just the kind of people I want to love with our quilts.

I've been learning more and more about human trafficking and the problem of childhood slavery in our world. It's a pretty big problem that many people feel that they can do nothing about. Well, I think we can do something about it. So, I'm starting small. Our first goal will be to make quilts for all the kids in a given safe home. I am humbled by the thought of making something for the bed of a child who has had the purpose and meaning of bed stripped from them. So, hopefully these meager quilts will communicate to these children that they are safe and they are loved and worth our creative labor and our time.

For more info on human trafficking:
www.love146.org
www.ijm.org
www.worldvision.org
http://www.notforsalecampaign.org/

So, if you'd like to join us in redeeming the meaning of bed for these children, please join us at our next sew-in on Valentines Day! Saturday, Feb. 14th, 12-6 in the Chapel of the Greater Boston Vineyard!
Questions: Please email: paschamg@gmail.com

Beloved Quilts in the News on Service Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 20:56:00 +0000

Laura Steinman, one of our faithful Beloved Quilts sew-in participants held a sew-in at her home on Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. Her sew-in event was covered by Channel 4 News, and was aired on the evening news between footage of Martin Luther King Jr. and Barack Obama. That felt pretty amazing! You can watch the video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mukqvAbVjU

And a numbers update: We have 1 more to give away to hit our "100 quilts given" goal! Wow! We gave 6 away to the Somerville Homeless Coalition last week, and we have 8 quilts started and being worked on by a 4H troop- which brings us to 99!!! So, I believe that we will SOON reach our goal of giving 100 away.

15 more quilts to hit 100!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 21:35:00 +0000

We're at 85 quilts given away so far!
Let's keep up the fun quilting & giving.
:)

how may quilts?

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 21:30:00 +0000

Unless we're forgetting a donation (which I think I might have missed logging one on the blog because I was having trouble with the Blogger program)
We have given away: 85 quilts so far. So, once we give away 15 more, we'll have hit our goal of making and giving away 100 quilts to local people displaced by violence or poverty.

Still making quilts...still giving them away

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 21:12:00 +0000

Today I had the pleasure of my two young sons helping me hand-deliver 13 more quilts to the Somerville Homeless Coalition. We got to see Mark Alston-Follansbee, their Executive Director who came to our Beloved Quilts Gala in December. He's such a wonderful man doing such great justice work for people. His work is definitely worth supporting. So, you can always go over to http://somervillehomelesscoalition.org/ to learn more ways how you can get involved.

Once we were back in our carseats, my older son asks, "Mom, how do homeless people wash their hands before they eat if they don't have a home or a bathroom or a shelter with a sink?"

Wow. I was tempted to take him out of his carseat, go back into the Somerville Homeless Coalition and give my son the opportunity to ask Mark his question. Except Mark is on a time deadline doing the continual work of grant writing to keep their services running, and I didn't want to put a wrench into his grant writing during his last few hours.

So, I said, "Well, that's why it's a good thing to give a bottle of water to someone asking for handouts because they can use the water to drink or to wash their hands. Or maybe we can start giving out bottles of hand sanitizer."

OK, so that's probably not the world's best answer, but it's what I gave on the fly.

Our next sew-in is scheduled for September 6th from 12-6pm at the Ministry Center of the Cambridge Vineyard. For directions:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

Gotta Love State Senator Pat Jehlen and her Director of Constituent Affairs, Lauren Sacco!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Thu, 15 May 2008 17:56:00 +0000

So I called Senator Jehlen's office today to voice my concern over the budget leaving off the Massachusetts Family Networks and I was received on the phone by Lauren Sacco, Jehlen's Director of Constituent Affairs. Lauren immediately remembered me from when she helped me out in the winter. She helped the Beloved Quilts Project by arranging all of our quilts to be run through the metal detector to catch any pins accidentally left in our quilts before giving them away. This was actually extremely helpful, because it takes a LONG TIME to find a pin in a quilt, and we had A LOT of quilts to run through before giving them away- so it was a HUGE GIFT to us. Anyway, I just mentioned my name on the phone, and Lauren totally remembered me and told me how she and Senator Jehlen keep up with what we're doing. HOW AWESOME IS THAT? I love having a state senator who truly cares about the homeless and truly supports and encourages those who are trying to make a difference with economic disparity! She even gave fabric from her own collection to be used in our quilts.

Anyway, I don't know how many Americans get the genuine pleasure of learning that their state senator truly cares about what they're doing- but I got that gift today. So, three cheers for Pat Jehlen and Lauren Sacco for encouraging this quilting constituent!!

In other news, I had the amazing pleasure of giving one of our quilts to a man in the rain. It was such a profound experience for me. This man was standing on the yellow dividing line on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, asking for money. I was driving and thinking, "darn, I don't think I have anything to give him, and then, WAIT, I HAVE QUILTS IN MY TRUNK!!!" So, I pulled over into a gas station, and opened up our banged up back end of our minivan and gave him a quilt. IT WAS AWESOME! He told me that he just got himself into a house and that he was so excited to have this quilt because his other one is totally tattered and falling apart. He told me he was a Vietnam Vet and looking for a good bible study. I called my church, the Greater Boston Vineyard and asked about small groups and told him about our services downtown, closer to where he lives. He was so grateful and excited about the quilt. This particular quilt was great for a man because it had some green bowling flannel and green and white striped man's shirt material. He loved it! I also felt something deep and profound, like the Spirit of God working through me or something when I looked him straight in the eye and said, "This quilt is for you because you are beloved." It was so deep and humbling and made me cry.

So, if you're quilting with us, and you take one of our quilts to give away, please share your story of giving and we'll put it up here!

Our next sew-in is Saturday, June 7th from 12-6 in the chapel of the Cambridge site of the Greater Boston Vineyard Church at 170 Rindge Ave. in Cambridge.

Hope to see you there! Bring your machines & thread and we'll supply the rest!!!
lots of love,
Pascha

Up-Coming Sew-Ins

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 03:34:00 +0000

Here's the Sew In Schedule! Please come join us make the rest of these quilts! Once we finish these first 100 for local homeless, our next 100 will be for girls and women in aftercare situations after being liberated from slavery/human sex-trafficking. So, come help us make these quilts, and help us connect to individuals and organizations who can really help us make a difference with these blankets of love.

All Sew-Ins are on Saturdays from 12noon-6:00pm in the Chapel of the Greater Boston Vineyard Church, 170 Rindge Ave., Cambridge, MA

2008 Saturdays, 12-6:
April 19th
May 3rd
June 7th
July 12th
August 2nd
September 6th
Future Dates to be posted

2008 Potential Gala Date: Saturday, December 6th

Looking forward to seeing you at the sew-ins!
Blessings to all of you!
Pascha

Quilts Up at J.P. Licks in Jamaica Plain

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 21:12:00 +0000

We have a show up at J.P. Licks in Jamaica Plain for the month of February. Go by and see the quilts and enjoy a coffee treat!

The Tally of Quilts Given Away So Far

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:49:00 +0000

17 to Elizabeth Stone House
1 to Hildenbrand's Sponsored Woman
1 to Elizabeth Stone House at Event
1 to Somerville Homeless Coalition at Event
15 to Somerville Homeless Coalition to Family Shelter
15 to Somerville Homeless Coalition Main Office for distribution
3 sponsored by Joyce Turner to Wayside Youth, a Group Home, & as a reminder quilt in the baby room.
2 given to 2 women who stand at the intersection of Rindge Ave. & Alewife
3 Given Through Sara Dalton to women at an emergency battered women's shelter
1 Given To Phil Zaldatte for his distribution
12 more given to the Somerville Homeless Coalition
1 given to Vietnam Vet in the rain

72 Given Away So Far...

Much Thanks to So Many People!!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 14:58:00 +0000

Thank you to everyone who came to the Beloved Quilts Gala!
Thank you for supporting this cause and loving those displaced
by violence or poverty or struggling with homelessness, we are
so grateful that you're here with us!

Thank you to the Somerville Arts Council. The Beloved
Quilts Project is supported in part by a grant from
the Somerville Arts Council, a local agency supported
by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Huge THANKS to All Participants in Every Beloved
Quilts Project Sew-In or Center Square Making Party!
Thank you all so much! There were more than 100
participants, and we were so busy making quilts that
we forgot to gather names, so you know you who you are
and we are so grateful for your loving handiwork! We
actually would love to compile a list of participants,
so, if you in some way helped out with making these
quilts, or know names of people who did, would you
please shoot an email to pascha@pfactory.org and we'll
log the names down. Thank you!

Special thanks to Sara Dalton for coming to almost
every sew-in, Victoria Blalock for a whole tailor's
workshop worth of fabric and hosting numerous center
square making parties, The Boston Vineyard Women's
Retreat 2006 for the first 18 Center Squares, Elaine
Shirron's 4H Group, Lexington Christian Academy for
having Beloved Quilts as an Interim Class, Vineyard's
Summer Camp 2006, Lilly Bekele Piper & the Cambridge
Montessori School, Saint Bartholomew's of Needham's
CCD program, Saint Ingatius of Chestut Hill's Sunday
Art & Education Program, The Aguilar Family for
having Beloved Quilts be the center of a Birthday
Party, Chelsea Vessenes & her small group for getting
these quilts ready to be shown, Vera Gropper & Diane
Driscol for their donation of sewing machines, Agnes
Cassano, for her donation of fabric, and every single
person who helped us put these quilts together in any
way! Blessings on all of you!

State Senator, Patricia D. Jehlen, for her donation of
Fabric and her Director of Constituent Affairs: Lauren
M. Sacco and the Massachusetts State Rangers for
running the quilts through the metal detector to make
sure the quilts are "pin free" before giving them
away.

The pFactory Board & Committee Heads:
Deidre Tao, Arden O'Donnell, Amy Carlin, Angel & Ian
Jackson, Kate Alley, Melisa Hughes, Sara Dalton,
Erica Chien, Victor Turner, Yanni Liu, Nina Bilimoria,
Pascha & Paul Griffiths.

The Beloved Quilts Gala Team:
Event Coordinator Extraordinaire: Deidre Tao,
Hospitality: Chaline Thande, Welcome & PR: Kate Alley,
Quilt Sponsorship: Heather Ray, Decorations: Stephanie
Acker, Logistics: Kristina Kaiser, Tech: Dominic
Kaiser
Recruitment & Invitations: Pascha Griffiths, Program &
Craft Cards: Angel Jackson, Photography: Mary Kocol,
Lisa Calderon, Laurie Bittman, Videogrpahy: Adam
Guzewicz & Garry Ratliff, Sponsor Cards: photo by Mary
Kocol, card by Lisa Calderon, Cheese Table: Esther
Splaine, Appetizer Chef: Paul Kurtzman, Event
Volunteers: Bond Hsu, CJ Piona, Carolyn Working,
Danielle Demaianiuk, Meredith Seifurt, Nthabi Mabuza,
Mauryn Kkira, Neil W. McCabe,Maggie McClellan,
Barbara Brescia, Jemima King, Sara Jorgensen, Sheila
Reeder, Caitlin Dalton, Chris Unander, Kate & Andre
Andres, Brian Gorman, Fulvio Corradi, R. Scott Tullock
Nelly Salas, Ife Rollins, Erin Fitzgerald,Laura
Cassell
Fitts, Grisel Vazquez, Sherie Laurie, Rebecca Kidwell
Damien Moye, Sarah Vessenes, Jessica Finch, and all
the Cookie Makers! Yum, thank you!

The Pastors, Staff & People of The Greater Boston
Vineyard Church who've given so much support,
encouragement, many volunteer hours and generous use
of space for all sew-ins and this Gala. Special Thanks
to Danny Tao for including Beloved Quilts in a recent
sermon, Christopher Greco for the Arts Ministry & for
"checking in" at the sew-in, Brian Housman for
extremely thoughtful & wise counsel, Chi-Ray Chien for
helping with logistics (it's always needed!), Marianne
Snekvik, Laurie Walle & Angel Jackson for including
Beloved Quilts at Mom to Mom, Kate Tyo for all the
Space Scheduling, Esther Cho for figuring everything
out all the time, Amy Thaggard for rescuing Caleb,
Adam Bakun for always pointing in the right direction
with kindness, patience & cheerfulness, Kristina
Kaiser for being a dial-up Wikipedia, Alissa Weigel &
Angel Brown for continued kindness & endless
transferring, Bob for helping get the quilts up, Jim
Banks for hanging the first batch of quilts, My Small
Group & cluster for all the prayer, cookie making, &
support, and Dave Schmelzer for a sermon on
"Practicing the Presence of God" which got this whole
thing ignited.

Boloco, Davis Square Somerville for sponsoring a
delicious meal for all sew-in participants, and
willingness to show our quilts.

JP Licks, Jamaica Plain for hosting the February quilt
show for our Valentines Quilt Give-away.

Good Food Café, Cambridge for displaying a Beloved
Quilt

Polartec/Malden Mills for the donation of fleece to
make 100 quilts.

Fabric Corner, Arlington for the deep discounts.

Boston University's PR Lab program and Beloved Quilts
Project's marvelous PR students/agents: Sharonda
Daily, Danielle Gadi, Jimin Yoo, and Katie Delach.

The Journalists:
-Jennifer Cendrowski for spending quality time with
the Beloved Quilts Project then writing a fun article
about it in the Boston Globe, then coming back to make
a few more center squares.
-Kimberly Abruzzo for making a center square then
writing an article for the Somerville Journal &
Cambridge Chronicle.
-Nuria Chantre for participating at a sew in then
writing a piece on us in the Somerville News.
-Andrew Benjamin for covering the story for the Boston
University Free Press.

And, if you didn't hear the story about my frostbitten
toes & how God instantly healed me when I screamed out
"JESUS, HELP!" well, then I must most importantly
thank God for instantly turning my gray rubbery toes
red and putting a lasting burning concern for homeless
people's warmth on my heart and in my now
cold-sensitive WHOLE feet.

Sew in: This Saturday, Dec 1st

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Griffiths) — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 04:34:00 +0000

The next sew in is this Saturday, Dec 1st at the Cambridge Vineyard, 10 Notre Dame Ave in Cambridge, MA.

We'll be in the ministry center dining room starting at 9am and sewing until 6pm -- come by and help us in our last sew in this year!

Dec. 9th, 2007: Beloved: Warmth Under The Stars, a Gala Event!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 04:36:00 +0000

So, I'm very excited to announce that we will be unveiling many of the quilts at our "Creative Black Tie" Gala Event on December 9th, 2007!!

Here is YOUR online invitation:
PFactory, Inc. & Beloved Quilts Project Invite You to:
Beloved: Warmth Under the Stars

A "Creative Black Tie" Gala to Celebrate the Unveiling
of the Quilts & Silent Auction* Fundraiser to Benefit
the Somerville Homeless Coalition & The Beloved Quilts
Project

Light Refreshments, Entertainment, & Presentations
Suggested Donation at the door: $10-$100

7-9:30 PM, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 9TH, 2007

Hosted by: The Boston Vineyard Church, 170 RINDGE AVE., CAMBRIDGE
directions: www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

RSVP for babysitting provided on site

781-526-7004,
pascha@pfactory.org

*Be armed with your checkbook!

The Beloved Quilts Project is supported in part by a
grant from the Somerville Arts Council, a local agency
supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

___________
Now that you've read YOUR INVITATION, you may wish to participate in either helping us pull the remaining quilts together, or in helping us put on the event!

In terms of putting quilts together, you can join us at our two upcoming sew-ins. Saturday, November 17th, 9am-6pm in the Chapel of the Cambridge Site of the Boston Vineyard Church
Saturday, December 1st, 9am-6pm, in the Dining Room of the Ministry Center of the Cambridge Site of the Boston Vineyard Church.
Directions: www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

If you'd like to help out or donate silent auction prizes, food, decorations, or entertainment to our event, please contact me at pascha@pfactory.org, or 781-526-7004
Thanks, and Abundant Blessings to all of you!
Pascha

17 quilts given away, 33 more done, 50 more to go!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 13:21:00 +0000

So, I finally counted. It's hard to keep track of the numbers with so many quilts. They're so large and take up so much space and we have them stored in a few different places. But, I did count, and we are half-way to our goal of 100. I don't know how we're going to get to our goal of 100 by mid December- but I believe it will happen- or we will come close and finish up the rest afterwards.

We do have a sew-in tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 29th from 9am-6pm at the Multi Purpose Room of the Cambridge Vineyard Church at 170 Rindge Ave. in Cambridge.
For directions:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

Please come join us! We have a lot of FUN work to do! If you can sew, please bring a sewing machine! If you can't sew, you're still totally valuable as one who can cut, iron, and place fabrics out on the quilts.

All Sew-ins are 9-6 at the Cambridge Vineyard Church. You can come for anywhere from 2 hours to the whole day.

Our remaining sew-in dates are:

October 13th Chapel (main floor of the Sanctuary Building to the right- where bagels are served on Sunday mornings)
Nov. 3 Chapel
Nov. 17 Chapel
Dec. 1 Dining Room (first floor of the Ministry Center)

We would be totally grateful if you have a group of people or organization who would like to participate in this project. It's great for schools, after-school groups, religious groups, parties, and groups of friends. Please contact Pascha if you would like to participate in this way! Help us reach our BIG SCARY GOAL OF MAKING 100 QUILTS!!
Pascha: 781-526-7004, pascha@pfactory.org

Hope to see you tomorrow and at our future sew-ins!

Pascha Griffiths in Today's Boston Globe, September 3, 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Griffiths) — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 19:44:00 +0000

A profile of Pascha Griffiths appeared today in the Boston Globe. The printed piece has some great photos, but here's the online version:

Boston Globe: Quilters patch together help for the homeless

If you've seen the article and are interested in helping out, please email pascha[at]pfactory.org

A Note of Thanks

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 22:01:00 +0000

Thank you so much to the Somerville Arts Council for the grant of $1000 to purchase materials for this project. We've used all $1000 towards materials & sewing machine maintenance. This program is supported in part by a grant from the Somerville Arts Council, a local agency supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. I LOVE THIS STATE! I love living in a state that values art & service. Go Massachusetts Cultural Council for caring about the homeless! Go Somerville Arts Council for constantly rocking the house in so many ways and supporting me in this huge project!!

I can't wait to have our big event and give a ton of quilts to the Somerville Homeless Coalition.

Blessings to you all!

Pascha

Our First Quilt Offering

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 19:50:00 +0000

So, a tragic thing happened. A secret shelter for women and children who were seeking refuge from domestic violence burned down. Here's the article in the Boston Globe:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2007/08/10/
fire_displaces_women_living_at_secret_shelter/

Tomorrow we will drive over to their offices and give away our first 17 quilts, including 6 crib-sized quilts for newborns.

Wow. It feels so good and so humbling to have these quilts at the ready.

Sew-In This Saturday, August 11th 9am-5pm

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 03:39:00 +0000

This Saturday, August 11th from 9am-5pm we'll have a blast of a sew-in in the Multi Purpose Room (MPR) of the Cambridge Vineyard Church. The MPR is in the basement of the main sanctuary building. For directions, go here:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

We'll take a yummy lunch break to Boloco in Davis Square:
www.boloco.com

We welcome all levels of creativity and sewing ability. You do not need to know how to sew to effectively and creatively contribute to a sew-in.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Thanks to Diane & Vera for their donations of sewing machines!

Sew-In July 28th from 9am-4pm

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 16:07:00 +0000

Please come to our next sew-in. Bring your sewing machine if you have one, and any notions, scissors, or "Beloved" quilts that you have at home.

Location: 2nd Floor Ministry Center, Cambridge Site of the Greater Boston Vineyard.
Directions:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Also, Date Change for ou September 22nd sew-in, same time & location, but instead it will be September 29th- 9am-6pm in the Multipurpose room, downstairs in he main Sanctuary.

Future scheduled sew-ins:

August 11th, 2007
August 25th, 2007
September 8th, 2007
September 29th, 2007

All are 9am-6pm in the Multipurpose Room which is downstairs in the Sanctuary Building Here:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

How do I get this going in my area?

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 17:04:00 +0000

So, this one is for Vicky and Bruce who posted the question. First off, please contact me! pascha[at]pfactory.org and we can discuss further! Secondly, the easiest thing to do is to start with a group of friends, a bunch of fabric, some scissors, pencils, and some steam-a-seam-2. Make 40"x40" squares of fabric. This will be your "canvas." Then cut yourself templates for each of the letters: B-E-L-O-V-E-D. Caps and/or lowercase- font is up to you. We have several different fonts at this point. Make your letters large so that they're very legible from a distance. I recommend having your letters be at least 12" tall and 8" wide. Then trace your template letters onto the Steam-a-Seam-2 (you can get this at your local fabric store). Then cut out your Steam-a-Seam-2 letters. Peel off the front of the letter paper. Then stick that to the back of the fabric you want to make that letter. Cut out the letter cutting both the fabric, and outermost millimeter of paper. Then peel off the back of the steam-a-seam-2 paper and place the letter onto your square. Once you've put all of your letters onto the square, iron them on. Once you've done this, you can sew around the letters (using a zig-zag or satin stitch) on your sewing machine to make the letters permanently attached. This will be the center square of your quilt. Then surround your quilt with fabric- this is where you can be as creative or as simple as you'd like. Sew this fabric around the quilt until you have a 60"x90" rectangle. Then attach this front to a back of some sort. Our backs are made of fleece- and I recommend fleece as it's very warm, dries quickly, and resistant to dirt. Once it's attached to a back, you can edge it with trim if you'd like- or edge & secure it the best way you know how. I hope this helps! Once again, please contact me. There are so many aspects to getting started- but I really think just gathering supplies and people and making 1 is the best way to get going.

Fun Articles & Upcoming Sew-In Dates- and a GREAT BOOK!

noreply@blogger.com (Pascha) — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 15:10:00 +0000

We have almost reached the halfway mark- we've completed around 40 quilts! We hope to reach 100 by the end of the year-which means we're looking forward to sewing with you at our upcoming sew-ins!

So, our next sew-in dates are all Saturdays in the Multi-Purpose Room of the Cambridge Vineyard Church from 9am-6pm:
July 28th, 2007
August 11th, 2007
August 25th, 2007
September 8th, 2007
September 22nd, 2007
For Directions: http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/cambridge/

A few articles have appeared in publications recently about our project:

The Somerville Journal:
http://www.townonline.com/somerville/religion/x1984916348

Quilters Buzz:
http://www.quiltersbuzz.com/2007/04/
a_beloved_quilt_projectmaking_1.html

The Daily Free Press:
http://media.www.dailyfreepress.com/media/storage/paper87/
news/2007/03/28/News/Project.Blankets.Citys.Homeless.With.Love
-2809426.shtml

The Cambridge Chronicle:
http://www.townonline.com/cambridge/religion/x1721527753

Also, my husband and I just finished the MOST AMAZING BOOK ABOUT HOMELESSNESS!!! Please read Under the Overpass by Mike Yankoski. It's the best read on this topic we've ever encountered! Two college aged men live homeless across America for 5 months as a social experiment/spiritual journey and tell their story. It's so poignant and inspiring.
http://www.amazon.com/Under-Overpass-Journey-Streets-America/
dp/1590524020/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-3862915-4935257?ie=
UTF8&s=books&qid=1181576121&sr=8-1
http://www.undertheoverpass.com/

God Bless you All!
Pascha

Sew In Dates!

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Griffiths) — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 18:34:00 +0000

We will be having sew-ins to turn these "BELOVED" squares into twin-size bed quilts on the following dates:
May 12th
June 2nd
July 28th
August 11th
August 25th
September 8th
September 22nd

All of these sew-ins will take place at the Cambridge Site of the Greater Boston Vineyard Church from 9am-6pm.
For directions, go here:
http://www.bostonvineyard.org/contactdirections/

A brief update!

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Griffiths) — Sun, 05 Nov 2006 14:58:00 +0000

We just recieved a huge donation from Malden Mills, where Polartec fleece is made. They have generously donated enough fleece to serve as the back of 100 quilts!

Our quiltmaking workshops have been slow but steady and we have about 40 squares complete and another 4 quilts done over the summer that just need to be finished.

Our hope is to give away 10 quilts before the end of this winter, then make the other 90 by fall 2007 and deliver them to Somerville-area transition housing shelters.

In 2008, we hope to do a 1,000 quilts for Boston.

We're looking for volunteers, now more than ever!

Why quilts? Why bother?

noreply@blogger.com (Paul Griffiths) — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 03:55:00 +0000

Our goal is simple: to make and distribute 100 quilts to people living on the streets or in shelters due to poverty, violence, sickness, or misfortune. Our focus is the greater Boston area; our mission is to remind the recipients of these quilts that they matter and that their community sees and cares for them.

HOW CAN I HELP?

We're looking for help in the following ways:

1) Quilting talent: people or groups who want to pitch in and build quilts themselves. Send an email to pascha[at]pfactory.org for information on how you can take part in or throw your own quilting party.
2) In-kind donations of fabric, thread, fleece and other components.
3) Cash donations to go towards those expenses for which we cannot locate in-kind donations.

The expected cost per quilt is $36.50, thanks to generous underwriting via an Artists Grant from the Somerville Arts Council. For 100 quilts, our cash or in-kind donations needs are: $3,650!

Please consider building or sponsoring a quilt yourself. Click here to make a donation via the supervising organization, The Possibilities Factory.

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO MAKE A QUILT?

Costs per quilt:

$8. Batting
$7.5 Adhesive
$5. Edging
$5. Fleece Back
$18. Fabric
$2. Thread
$1. Prep Materials
($-10) Somerville Arts Council Underwriting
$36.50 Total Per Quilt

And about ten to twenty hours of time.

WHY SO MUCH? COULDN'T THE MONEY BE SPENT IN BETTER WAYS?

In conceiving of this project, we struggled with the question of how many quilts to make and at what price. But the more we talked about it and the more we tried to drive the price down, the cheaper we felt.

The quilts are a labor of love, plain and simple. We wouldn't manage the costs of a quilt for our parents or our children by working with the least expensive materials. Love, by its nature, is a little wasteful; we buy flowers knowing they will soon be gone. It doesn't keep us from enjoying their beauty.

OK, BUT WHY QUILTS?

'Home' is more than a building. We want to provide a travelling piece of home these recipients can take with them during a transient time in their lives. A simple, but dignifying action.

Thanks for reading this and considering helping us out.

Best,

Pascha & Paul Griffiths