April, 2015

VOLUNTEERISM

Without the dedicated work and time put in by many volunteers the Peace by Piece Quilters would not be able to provide so many of the children in our community who need comfort.  It takes more than just the things that happen on bee day, things like individuals and groups getting together between bees in their homes.  That's when skilled quilters quilt, piecers piece, and cutters cut.  It's the volunteers who help the the quilters and the tyers by cutting backs and batting, ironing tops and backs,  and layering and basting it all together.  It's the piecers who piece a back that's too small, or take a kit home to sew into a top, or cut and sew their own fabrics into a quilt.  It's the cutters who take an arm load of kit-kits home every month and cut the pieces for the piecers to sew at the next bee.  It's the multiple volunteers who spend time in the Peace by Piece Quilters stash closet sorting the donations into tubs of similar colored fabrics, or scouring through all those tubs looking for fabrics that will live together nicely as a quilt so the cutters will have kit-kits to cut.  It's the person who takes all those left over strips home to cut, sew, and press into neat little binding bundles to finish off all those quilts.  It's the people that show up at the bee site the evening before bee day to unload supplies and move tables & chairs and get everything related to the bee in the proper places so bee day goes smoothly.  It's the volunteers who stop by local quilt shops to pick up donations that have been left there for us.  It's the volunteer who communicates with the church about scedules and writes articles about the Peace by Piece Quilters for the church's newsletter. And at the end of bee day it's the people who help make sure everything we've moved at the bee has been put back where it was before we invaded the space and all the bee supplies are stored away on shelves or loaded up for it's trip back to the Peace by Pice Quilter stash closet.  There are many other large and small, but inportant tasks, that are done month after month, years after year, that makes us successful in our mission.

Thanks to all of the Peace by Piece Quilters volunteers we completed 432 comfort quilts in 2014.

Since our first bee in April 2004 we've made a total of 4,628 quilts.

 

BEE REPORTS 

 

 

FEBRUARY - During our February bee we were visited by AZB4K Board President Gloria Wood and Vice President Jeanette Baetsle.  They visited with many volunteers answering questions and sharing information.  Our goal for the day was to focus on reducing the high number of quilt tops waiting to become real quilts.  Everyone pitched in to quilt, tie, bind and label.  Because of all the dedicated volunteers staying focused on the goal we completed 81 quilts.
All those that had done piecing homework during the month allowed 20 new tops to find their way into the Peace by Piece Quilters stash closet.
We were blessed with 4 separate donations of fabric from the community and our raffle items raised $58.

MARCH - Volunteers completed 62 quilts and 13 tops at the March bee.  We accepted 2 donatons of fabric and raised $50 with the raffle items.

At these two bees volunteers had an opportunity to purchase raffle tickets for an OttLight that Santa dropped off during his visits in December.  It is a 24w Craft Plus Floor Lamp that is perfect for large work areas.  It features a wide shade which allows broad illumination, sturdy yet lightweight base, and an adjustable flex neck to position the light where you need it.  The retail cost of this awesome OttLite is $209.99.  Don't miss the opportunity to purchase raffle tickets for this awesome light during the next few bees.

 

 

  

        

DUKE'S CORNER    

Hello everyone, Duke here:  Below is a picture of me inspecting the new bags of scraps mom came home with to make sure they're ready for the beds we'll be making.

The rest of the pack sniffed a few bags and also gave their "paws up".

We were busy making pet beds the past couple months.  A few weeks ago mom dropped off another car load to the shelter in Casa Grande and they were so very happy to receive them.  When asked if they want to receive more beds, it was a unanimous and enthusiastic YES!

Mom will be at the bee this month so bring your scraps so we can make more beds!

Puppy hugs & kisses.  

 

 

 QUOTES & TIDBITS

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2014:

~ The volunteer rate was 25.3%.

~ About 62.8 million people volunteered through an organization at least once during the year.

~ 22.0 % of men volunteer compared to 28.3% of woman.

~ Individuals with higher level of education engage in volunteer activities at higher rates.

~ Volunteers spent a median of 50 hours on volunteer activities annually.

~ Volunteers 65 and over volunteer 96 hours annually.

 

JUST FOR GRINS

The quilt in this video is not a typical quilt.  It has a story and has been touring for a decade so maybe you've seen it in person.  Since I'm not a traveling kinda person I have not seen it and thought some of you other non-traveling people like myself would appreciate seeing the video as much as I did.

 

 

AZ BLANKETS 4 KIDS HAPPENINGS

The next upcoming AZB4K bee will be on April 18 at Sunland Village in Mesa.  For more bee informationanout this bee an other AZB4K scheduled bee please visit their website at  azblankets4kids.com .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peace By Piece Quilters

UPCOMING BEE

Thursday, April 2, is the next Peace by Piece Quilters bee.  

There will NOT be a FREE table at the bee this month.  So if you have any sewing related STUFF that needs to go live with someone else please hang onto it until the next bee that has a FREE table.

Gratefully,

  ~Wanda Dix~