I Need a Volunteer Accountant

After having an amazing talk last night that encouraged me to not give up on my dreams of becoming a non-profit and after so many of you have reached out and blessed me with the quilts to take to Oso, I have decided to jump in with both feet and do this!

Today I have spent the day writing up a business plan, mission statement (we already had one), etc. However, I am not an accountant, I dislike working with numbers, projections and statistics, so I am looking for someone who is an accountant that would like to volunteer their services to draw up a 3 year budget.

We can do this via Email or telephone and I can call you, but I seriously am lost when it comes to business budgeting.

National Guard Quilt Requirements

For the 77 National Guard Quilts I need, they must be adult sized, they cannot be for a baby or a lap sized quilt. They have to be able to cover an adult laying down.

I would prefer colors and fabric patterns in something that either a male or female could use so look for unisex patterns such as bold plaids, stripes, abstract prints, circles, etc..

If you have a husband or son, think what they would like or better yet, take them fabric shopping with you, you might be amazed at how great their eyes are.

Make it fun, make it with love and remember it is for the men and women who protect us during horrible devastation without asking for a thanks!

Even The Strongest Men Break During A Tragedy

I want to share with you that I have not been up to the Oso area yet. I have not seen the devastation and have been told one must now have credentials to get into the area. I do not have those credentials, but I have love for those that are in the area.

All but 2 people have been accounted for and the operation has been halted for searching for them and has now turned into a clean up that will go on for many years in my estimation.

We see the slide on television, what we don't see is what the people looking for those that died see and I won't say anymore than I have to as I am sure you can imagine that many that found were not whole.

Imagine the horrible smell of death surrounding you day in and day out as you anxiously look and pray to find just one more survivor and then, you find a child.

I have been around the smell of death, it just doesn't leave your nostrils when you walk away, it clings to you, your clothing, your hair and you can't just wash it away and...it is a smell you will never forget.

There are many people in the area searching, there were first responders, neighbors, friends, family members, strangers and those that go first in events like these, the National Guard.  There were 77 National Guard that went up day in and day out and came back changed.

They will never let us see on television the pain in their faces, their shoulders that have drooped a bit more, the tears they cry when no one sees them and when they are told it is time to go home, they will only to be called out for another disaster and no matter how strong one is, it takes a toll.

I need a quilt guild, church or quilting organization or quilters in general to step up and commit to helping make 77 quilts just for the National Guard that responded.

Please, these men and women do so much to help us in our desperate times of need, won't you reach out and bless them with a quilt?

You can send it to me:


Jean Kester
18740 Ivan Street SW
Rochester, WA  98579

Please share this with others!

Oso Landslide and Tornadoes

I am still collecting quilts for Oso landslide families and hope to get more than ever this week coming in as I am going up Friday for my personal first delivery.

However, with seeing the devastation the tornadoes have left behind, I have received an excessive amount of baby and toddler quilts and would love to pass them on to those in these areas in need.

I have put out my feelers, however, if you have a contact point or hear of anyone collecting please, let me know. 

Please remember, I am dedicated to completing the goal of 500 or more quilts for Oso and that would be adult quilts.  Anything left over as always will be passed forward to help others.

I know there are still people collecting for the victims of Hurricane Sandy and Oklahoma last year.  Please remember we still need quilts for these people and while the devastation is horrible, I need to finish what I began for the people of Oso.

Blessings!

Quilts For The Pastors and Fire Fighters

I cannot say how blessed I feel to be receiving so many beautiful quilts and I promise you every one of them will be distributed to the area for survivors and first responders.

I am just at under the 1/2 way mark at around 235 when you remove the baby quilts. We will be taking some with us, but I am told at this time there is not a need for many baby quilts.

I haven't met her yet, but I have talked to an amazing lady no, angel named June who lives about 30 minutes from the area. Last week she picked up some of the quilts the YMCA is holding for us and today she delivered them to fire fighters and the lead pastor in the area for the pastors that have been up there offering counseling and helping out.

Quilts for the pastors from Layers Of Hope - Quilting 911 and all of you!

Sometimes the fire fighters are a big tougher. The always want to give their quilts away to help others, however, June was able to tell them these were for them to keep for their beds at the firehouse or where ever!  

 No, those aren't bananas they are quilts. The quilts taken to the YMCA in Skagit valley and you can tell they are happy to have them.

I am heading up to the area on Friday and will be stopping by and dropping some off with the 911 dispatch center that were the true first responders on scene. Then off to give some more to families.

Thank you all so much for what you have done. Please, continue to share with quilters on your blog, Facebook page or in person we still need more quilts. 

Our goal was 500, lets surpass that!

Oso Landslide Quilt Update

As of today, I have the following:

•  247 quilts
•  68 fleece blankets
• 3 boxes of used clothing **PLEASE DO NOT SEND ME CLOTHING** I have no place to store it!
• 1 pink diaper bag with matching quilts
• 2 Vera Bradley bags 

 Last known, there were an additional 70 or so in Mt. Vernon and 40 had been picked up. Today I believe 20 will be handed out to the chaplains that have been in the area since day one, offering comfort and helping where they can! 

There are still more we need, so please adult quilts only from this point on as I spoke to someone in the area last night and she stated there is NOT a big need for baby quilts.

I have been blessed due to my years as being a 911 emergency telecommunications operator to have the confidence of those in the area to keep me somewhat in the loop.

The 2 beautiful matching quilts you see below will go to the rtwo sisters who not only lost their parents, but right after helping with the clean up lost their cousin a military member to suicide.

It is my hope that these 2 that came from two different people in two different states will give these young ladies some comfort knowing the world cares about them.

 Please continue to send quilts, our goal in the beginning was to get 500 and we are almost half way there, so keep them coming.  

I am expecting several calls today to give me some numbers for my journey to the area to drop these off on Friday. Please pray that I can make this trip as it is about 3 hours up there from where I live, the driving in the area for distributing the quilts and the drive back. In all, I am thinking about 10-12 hours in the car.  My back is causing me lots of pain, please pray it settles down.

Thank you so much and if you don't know it, you truly are the most amazing quilters ever!  You are quilting angels!

Shout Out Sunday

What is Shout Out Sunday?  It is my day today to give a huge shout out and virtual hugs and genuine thanks to all those who have helped get quilts to me to take to Oso.  

If I miss anyone, forgive me as I have more boxes to open!

Marilyn Thomas           Des Moines United Methodist Church

Sisters Fabrics                      Jennifer Saia       

Sewing Klatch (Calvary Chapel Newport Beach, CA)

McChord Chapel Quilters      Peace and Grace Ministries

Marilyn Lewis     Joy Griffith          Janet Shaw           Judith Hartman

Amy Pflleiger     Cee Kueser           Joann Hooser

My Family for giving up space in the home (Jerry, Shyann, Jonathan and Alysha)

Rebecca Beckenbach           Desert Sky Quilting                Nancy Phillips

Patty Derobertis          Bonnie Engstrom                  Sandy Mink

Jennifer Wendorf                   Donna Scott-Vines       Kathy Nyman

Valerie Root        Alie Aller            Phyllis Baas and Kathy Stone

Martingale Press and their amazing quilters

Marcia McCurdy           Debra Creach                   Pam Lockwood

Just a few of the people who have blessed this organization so we can reach out and help others! 

 

Hands 2 Help Charity Quilt Challenge

This is the quilt I am donating to this years Hands 2 Help Charity quilt challenge.  I have had it completed for months now and since my machine is in the shop, I had no choice but to choose one I had already made.

This quilt will go to an organization called Quilts of Compassion that hands quilts out to those people living through disasters and are currently still passing out quilts to tornado survivors from Oklahoma.

I chose this quilt because doing what we do at Layers of Hope - Quilting 911 it just seemed the perfect fit and I know this little quilt will find a home.

In the meantime, I have a living room full of quilts, my van is full and my grandsons room for the people of Oso, Darrington and Arlington from the landslide disaster.  

I picked up well over 100 on Friday in Burien at a wonderful shop, Town Square Fabric and Yarn .  This shop is brand new and the owner Cynthia and her amazing partner Christine stepped up to collect quilts for us. It was an honor to finally meet them face to face!

As you can see, my van was full. My oldest granddaughter went with me, she lowered the seats, helped load the boxes and bags and we had a full load.

Paying it forward for the many blessings I have in my life just seems the right thing to do and Friday, we will be heading up to distribute these quilts to those in need as well as the first responders!

Such Warmth

Today, I unpacked or my granddaughter actually unpacked and repacked 60 fleece blankets that were sewn by the Sewing Klatch in Newport, Beach California. Also in the mix were 12 beautiful quilts. 

I am going to have to rent a mini-van next week as mine needs some repairs and remove the seats and put boxes in the back and drive them up to the area.  I will also probably spend the night with my cousin and his beautiful fiancee as I cannot make the drive and back or I won't be able to walk when I get home.

Everything is just amazing to me and I cannot wait to get up in the area and begin to bring your smiles to those hurting!

Saying Good-Bye To An Unseen Hero

In November 2013 an activation was requested for Christy Shidal who was diagnosed with Acute Leukemia. It is with heavy heart that I am emailing to let you know she has passed away. 

Thank you all for your thoughts, prayers, and other support that were so generously given for a very special friend, co-worker and wonderful dispatcher. 

Misty George
Hurst Police Department Dispatch
825 Thousand Oaks Dr
Hurst TX 76054

If you would like, please send a card of support to this department!

Delivery Going Soon

I have someone in the area of Darrington/Arlington/Oso, I will be meeting up with her next week and we will be taking some of the beautiful quilts up there to bless those in need.

Please, please continue to send quilts, I love that my UPS man thinks I am nuts!  

No baby quilts at this time, I will let you know at a later date if we need more baby quilts!

 

Thank You's Are Nice, Very Nice

Out of darkness comes light, out of sadness a smile, out of tragedy kindness from strangers, out of hopelessness...hope and in those darkest days when you walk around in a fog, when time seems to slow to a crawl or speed up to warp speed, when you forget to eat, when you can't remember the last time you sat down, comes a quilt.

While some do not understand the importance of these scraps of fabric being cut and pieced together, a quilter knows. They do this out of love, they fuss and pray over each stitch and they send their efforts on to bless others who are lost.

It is when these times hits, when we send out quilts that sometimes out of the blue, a thank you arrives, and when they do, I cry with each one, my family has to read them because my voice cracks and I cry knowing we made a difference.

Here are two of a few I received this week and want to share with you:

 While these came to me, they are actually for all of you who make quilts and send them to me to bless others!  

Always know, YOU make a difference and so do your QUILTS!

No Deadline For Quilts

Please, if you have a quilt to send and think you have a deadline, we have no deadlines. The area is still under mud, they are still cleaning up, families are burying family members, the community is crawling with emergency management and personnel and who knows when people will start finding homes to live in again and need these quilts.

I promise you when they need them, we will be ready!  They are not going anywhere until I get a request to take them up there and right now people are still asking me to stay out of the area.

I was able to get approximately 50 quilts from the Skagit YMCA picked up by the Family Center in Darrington to pass out, but that is just beginning to scratch the surface, of family, survivors, emergency personnel.

I also have been given a contact person who lost their home, so that will be dealt with once I know the person wants a call. I DO NOT blind call family members, uncool!

So keep sending them in!

Two more to look at:

 

Oso Landslide Quilt Needs

At this time I want to thank all of you for your amazing generosity as it just keeps coming.  I have been in touch with several people from the area this morning and they said we would need no more baby quilts.

We do need unisex or quilts for males and larger than lap sized.  I will be working today on organizing these into bins for transportation and getting them up into the area as soon as I can.

Remember, there are still bodies being located, still family members missing, still emergency efforts going on and they DO NOT need me in the midst of their chaos.

I am in contact with people in the area, they know what they need and do not need, when I should go and when I should remain out of the way.

You have all been amazing, continue with this blessing as right now many people have no homes, no family and others homes were down river and are flooded and they cannot go to their homes.

You have all blessed someone you may never meet and will never know how much you touched their hearts with your love, prayers and hands of quilting.

Thank you all for allowing me to be the vehicle or vessel in which your love will be distributed!

Quilt Delivery

I was able to contact Wyonne at the Family Center in Darrington and she will go by the YMCA in Mount Vernon and pick up the quilts they have for delivery on the Darrington side.  The YMCA has about 50 quilts.

The HUB or Osos Mudslide Relief organization has asked me to hold off bringing any up as families are not coming in and asking for anything yet, so I will do as requested.

I am still trying to make contacts in the area of first responders!

Coming Home

As you know we were on an extended 10 day vacation, but it was amazing to come home to boxes of quilts from UPS and FEDEX neatly stacked by our house sitter.

At Our Home When We Arrived

 Then it was time to go to the post office. Would we have 2 or 20 boxes or any at all?  I knew I wasn't going to be disappointed when our mail lady told us to pull up to the loading dock.

Hubby whispered, 'how many can there be?'  

Here is a picture of hubbies camper, with 39 boxes in all sizes of quilts and in all kinds of packaging from boxes to vinyl envelopes.
Getting the kids involved was necessary when we got home.

I can still carry one more!

Wagon Train Line

Oh sure, I can see!

Hubby putting the last box down.

 Then began the sorting into piles for men and women, boys and girls and babies, tagging each one with a paper heart stating who donated it and from what state, sending out a thank you card for each one, taking a picture and posting on pinterest!

These are the ones I have gone through thus far and am waiting to put them in plastic bins for transport.

These are the ones I will be going through from now until delivery date.  Notice that you can no longer see my grandsons wall or shoes and they are much higher!

Notice the first picture and now this one

Goes back quite aways!

So, what am I doing blogging? Gotta run, lots of work still to do!

 

Once Again, We Need Monetary Donations

The quilts are coming in by the box fulls and sometimes we are blessed to have someone call and say they have quilts to pick up or drop off.

What I need now more than ever are monetary donations to cover the cost of plastic bins for sorting and transportation of the quilts and to cover the cost of gas for the van to transport.

Thank you for your continued support and in helping me get these quilts to where they are needed.

You can click on the Go Fund Me link or the PayPal link and as always, any extra money we have will be going to Catholic Social Services in the area to help them with funeral expenses!

Please Do Not Forget The Men and Boys

I have 3 small plastic bins, so decided today to maybe try to sort some of these quilts into bins:

• Men/Boys (Teens & Adults)
• Boys (5-13)
• Baby/Toddler Boys (0-5)
• Women/Girls (Teens & Adults)
• Girls (5-13)
• Baby/Toddler Girls (0-5)
• Unisex (Teens/Adults)
• Unisex (5-13)
• Unisex (0-5)

 However, I am extremely short in the men's area and while I know there are more quilts coming and 100 on their way and another 100 waiting at a quilt shop, we need to think about the men and boys.

Most firefighters and first responders are men, most rescue workers are men and I am NOT being sexist, I am just saying we still have a long way to go before our numbers are even, so please, remember our men and boys when it comes to sending quilts!

The work of quilters and their generosity never ceases to amaze me. These 5 cuties came from Montana for Oso!

 

Worth Repeating

I have received numerous boxes of used clothing for the families in OSO and I have said this before so feel it is once again worth repeating.

I have been told OSO is over run with used clothing, toys, etc.  they have no place for this stuff and with me living in our home with my family, I have no place to store used clothing and I am NOT collecting used clothing for OSO.

Remember this organization is all about quilts of hope, quilts of warmth and we are collecting new handmade quilts or crocheted blankets or knitted blankets and even new hand tied blankets.

I will NOT deliver torn, stained, old, store purchased, greasy, smelly quilts that are tattered and worn. I will not deliver used clothing that you dug out of your closet from the 1950's. 

I reserve and have the right to dispose of these items as I see fit and I will do so!  I said this in the beginning and it appears I need to repeat it...I have the right to toss into the trash or donate to local shelters and second hand shops anything that looks old and nasty!

If it has been sitting in your garage, basement, closet or grandma's house for years and no one wanted it and you sent it to me to get rid of it, I am sorry, the people of OSO deserve our best, not our throw away's we don't want.

I have seen people offer homeless people their half eaten and slobbered on burger, their cold three day old taken off the car floor fries, their expired food...these people don't want this and neither do the people of OSO want the things we no longer want.

Love on these people, give them a smile if only for a moment, show them you care by donating something you would want to have in your home. Not something you would never use.

Please, think before you send something that deep down, you know belongs in the trash!

Todays Quilts from Oregon, California

Here are some pictures of the quilts and afghan that I opened up today!

Each quilt is lovingly tagged with a paper heart that states who quilted it and the quote 'From Our Hearts to Our Hands, We Quilt.  Thanks to Jennifer at Jennifer's Jewels I can now place small labels on the back with the Layers of Hope logo.

Tomorrow, I will have more pictures to post!

 

Here it is April 18th and Inquiring Quilters Want To Know...

Yes, I agree with the person who asked what is going on.

First of all, long before the devastating landslide, our family had a well deserved family vacation planned to see my elderly step-father who lives alone, to visit my son who lives on the street, to see our first great grandchild and to allow our grandchildren time to be kids and have fun!

We placed our mail on hold and hired a house sitter who neatly stacked quilt boxes and today, we picked up 39 boxes of quilts.
At this time, I have only gone through 5 and one was a blessing of fabric from a lady in Washington DC, another was quilt labels.

How many do I have currently on hand?  I do not honestly have a number yet.  How many have been handed out? None. Prior to my leaving for vacation I had approximately 10-15 quilts and wanted to wait for a full load.

When I returned home, we had 39 boxes to pick up. One quilt shop had only 1 quilt to pick up, another had 4 great ones to go and the others were stained and pretty bad, another person continues to send me boxes of used clothing, which I have no way to store and the area has asked for people to stop sending clothing.

At this time, right now, unboxed and counted, I have 27 quilts with many more boxes to go through.

Please understand, I open each box ensuring the quilts are new, clean without stains and tears or tattered, I take pictures of them, I log them into a system I have set up for Layers of Hope, I send out thank you cards for everything that comes to me.

I cannot just tear open boxes and toss them around, I have a reverence for these quilts, for those they will go to and those that made them.

I will get these quilts up to Oso. How many more we will need?  I do not know, but I promise as I said these quilts will continue to go until we are told to stop.

It is my fervent hope and prayers that we can get a load up this week via a group that goes up everyday and we can get some answers as to how many more are needed.

Please, bear patient with me, I promise they will be delivered until we are told no more are needed!

Just Came Back To This

We just got home last evening from a nine day, 3270 mile round trip vacation that took us to northern California to see my elderly step-father, down through the San Joaquin valley to see my son who is homeless,  our first great granddaughter, previous in-laws, through the desert of California onto Phoenix to see our three sons, 2 grandchildren, then to Knotts Berry Farm for sun and fun, onto Magic Mountain for sun and sitting for most of the day for me, back up the state.

I am exhausted and rejuvenated and wanted to share that our house sitter very nicely stacked quilts that came in via FedEx and UPS...today we go to pick up our mail!

Today

Today these boxes came in and I am so happy they arrived!  Thank you to everyone Marilyn from California, Deb from Angola, Dean from WA

I want to open them all and show the amazing quilts inside, however, I have been hit pretty hard with what I am assuming to be the flu (fever, chills, headache, oozing eyes) and can barely hold my head up or my eyes open.

Right now, I need to get over this before it settles into pneumonia!

Thank you all!

**Please know while I so much appreciate all the donations, I am not in a position where I can take clothing at this time.  If you have clothing to donate, please head over to this link and see where those items can be sent.**  http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20140331/NEWS01/303319999/Resources-Where-to-go-how-to-help-mudslide-victims

Thank you so much for your understanding! 

If You Post Anonymously, I AM NOT Ignoring you...

When you leave me a question or a comment and you are expecting me to reply and I do not, it is not because I am ignoring you, it is simply because you have replied as an anonymous commentor and did not leave an email in your comment.

I am sorry, this is a very important issue to me when people think I am just not answering them, but honestly, I have no way to do so.

You can go into your blog settings and turn off the anonymous posting, but sadly, I do not know how to tell you how to do that.  All I can tell you is if you leave me an email in your post I will reply as soon as I can.

 

C McPeek of Poulsbo, Please Contact Me...

I will take this post down as soon as you contact me, however you are posting as anonymous and I have no way to answer your question.

I have a contact point you can drop off in the area, but I need to have a way to contact you and give you that information.

Contact me at compassionatequilter@rocketmail.com with your email or telephone number and I will contact you right back!

They are Arriving...

The quilts are beginning to arrive and I feel so blessed to be facilitating this to reach out to those who lost so much.

First, my treadle machine is holding as many as she can and true to her name, she is saying Mercy what a blessing!

 This adorable baby quilt came in today from Marsha M. of Washington and grandson happily volunteered to hold it up.

Two more came while I was out running errands from Debbie C. also from Washington.  I think I am definitely making some day trips for hugs this summer!

 Then this morning bright and early before 0800, a knock on my door brought two of these beautiful quilts from Phylis B. and Kathy S. also of Washington!

Theirs are the very beautiful purple ones in the top picture and they are amazing.

Last night very quietly, Fed Ex dropped this one off from Allie A. of Washington along with candy for me!

I cannot wait until delivery day to see how many we have! 

Oh Brother, I Won Sewing Machine Lights!

So in addition to making quilts for Layers of Hope - Quilting 911, donating quilts to others in need, I love reading blogs, joining giveaways and doing my best to pay it forward!

My main living room where I do all my quilting at this time, has no main source of light at night.  Who thought of this beautiful room and didn't think to add a ceiling fan or overhead light is beyond me.

So I use an Ott lite which was donated to me years back by Ott and when they blessed another reader on my blog in a giveaway and it is good, but I need more lighting as by night time my eyes are weary.

So when I joined the Confessions of a Quilt Addicts
Hands to Help Quilting giveaway where we give quilts and don't receive them, I was also entered into a drawing to win some very cool LED lights to fit my sewing machine.

The giveaway was sponsored by Inspired LED and I won and as much as my machine has been working, they will come in handy!

I can't wait to see how they work! Check out the pictures over at Confessions by clicking here: http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2014/03/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-time-for-giveaway.html

I can't post a picture because that would be infringing on her blog and I wouldn't want to do that, but she is amazing and so is her post!
 

Just A Reminder, Please Ask Me First

I do not mean to be snarky, snippy, snotty, snooty, rude or anything else when saying this, however it is important for me to let you know that the Layers of Hope logo on this page is trademarked, so while I would probably give you permission to use it, I would really appreciate you asking me to use it and to let me know what you are using it for.

For those of you who have asked me, I appreciate it very much 

An Anonymous Thank You

This was in my in-box this morning and just made tears roll down my face.  While it is almost impossible to penetrate the tough exterior of law enforcement, search and rescue, 911 operators, I can tell you we are like a Rolo...hard on the surface and soft and gooey in the middle.

'I worked in law enforcement for 15 yrs. This would have made such a difference. I am now retired, but am still a member of the law enforcement community. If I see a need on your blog I will send something if I can. I have a passion to provide quilts to people actively serving or Veterans of the military. It is not part of Quilts of Valor, Wounded Warriors, Quilts of Honor; but I am responsible for an area in the U.S. Most of my time quilting is with that project; but if I can help you out I will! Thank you for what you are doing!'

Quilters do make a difference. This isn't about me, me, me or me, myself and I, it is about all of us working together to reach out to those we wouldn't be able to help if we didn't know they existed.

For this thank you is to all of you, from someone who just wanted to say thanks and for that, I pass it on, take a bow and tip my hat and from my heart say you each mean so much to me but more you mean so much to the person that will receive these quilts! 

 

Todays Mail Stack

Checking out the stack of mail as it came in today was our Boxer baby who has to know what is going on and if there are any treats in those boxes!

 Inside these boxes were beautiful quilts for the families and first responders for Oso.  Here they are from New York, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin!

 I cannot wait to take up our first load later this month!

Quilts For Mom and Child with MRSA

These 2 quilts were sent to me by Marilyn L. of North Hills Quilter and her Binky Patrol for dispatchers in need. I added the binding on both and purple heart shaped labels and packed them up this morning.

They are going to 911 dispatcher Tonya and her 3 year old daughter Alex who has MRSA and is in the hospital and has had numerous surgeries to get rid of the infection.  This is such an insidious disease to get rid of as it spreads like wildfire and is so antibiotic resistant.

Our oldest had it when she was about 3 or 4 and the pain we had to put that child through several times a day to remove the poison out of her body, to this day she still remembers it, still will not get around anyone who appears to have an open sore and always has hand sanitizer with her. She cried this morning when I told her about baby Alex and said she will pray for her!

 I just love the Teddy Bears on this one and know Alex will as well and the colors in Tonya's reminds me of a beautiful sunset.

If you would like to help Alex and Tonya, please follow this link:
http://www.gofundme.com/7w8cgg?preview=1