How We Began.

A view from the rescue vehicle evacuating us from our property.

Dear friends.I was approached by a friend and fellow quilter Jenny Bacon to help with a project to give every household in Carisbrook that was damaged in some way by the terrible floods we have recently endured  a quilt of love This is my way of cataloging what is happening and who is and has helped where. . By the time we are ready to distribute thes quilts- hopefully sometime in April,some folks will be  settled back in their homes and some will be still waiting on repairs.Some may never return. They will be feeling like everyone has forgotten them and noone really cares.
As I have a longarm quilting machine-a Gammill with Statler Stitcher,I  had a lightbulb moment and posted a request on the  Statler siblings list requesting orphan blocks to be made into quilts for Carisbrook.The list mother contacted me and we agreed on a plan. Janis posted to the list a request for America to  "Flood Australia with Quilts". Five areas have been defined and a dropoff person for mailing in each area North,South, East,West and Central. requesting that siblings made as many rail fence blocks measuring 121/2" as they wanted to ,hunt up their orphan blocks and send with some loose change to help with postage to each collection point. Cut  off date is 28 February 2011 when the collections will be posted to me.I have since had contact from a US army base in South Korea where the army wives have a statler,they are making quilts for us. I have also had contact from a sibling in Canada willing to send blocks also. As this was snowballing at a rapid rate,a friend and fellow quilter from Tasmabia has offered to accept  the parcels from two of the areas and she has organised working bees to complete the squares and tops into quilts. Ineke will be coming to Victoria  at the end of march and will deliver the finished quilts to me. These will be very well travelled quilts ,beginning in USA then travelling to Tasmania, then across bass Strait on a boat and by motor to their destination in Victoria. A huge thank-you to Ineke for organising this. My dear friend Lynn from Mildura has offered to buy batting and backing and quilt many -at least 20 quilts for me.Michelle hawley from SA is organising a collection to send down to me .Kaye Brown  and Paula Daley from NSW have offered to help and support with the quilting and donations of quilts.  My dear Daughter Lorraine who owns Quilters Bazaar in Gisborne put the email out to Southern Cross Quilters., and I have had many responses from them also. I have quilters all over willing to help quilt quilts so if you would like to donate a quilt or a top or some blocks please contact me and we can see if there is someone in your area willing to quilt it for us or weather to send it straight to me.
I am overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of spirit oc my fellow quilters.

This is one womans journey to help he neighbours.