By Jeff Alexander
Source: WBAY
MENOMINEE, Mich. (WBAY) – Back in 1945, when Lutheran World Relief was formed to provide assistance to Europe following World War Two, a group of women from a church in Menominee, Michigan sprang into action.
Now, nearly 80 years later, and spanning generations, their mission to help others in need around the world continues.
This week in Small Towns, we travel north to witness the incredible dedication behind the Forget-Me-Knot Quilters.
Inside Bethel Lutheran Church in Menominee, Michigan, it’s Mary Krah’s special day.
Her friends are serenading her with “Happy Birthday,” and there are coffee and donuts waiting to be enjoyed. But if you think this is simply a birthday party, think again.
On the second Monday and Tuesday of every month, these ladies are on a mission.
“We have an assembly line, I don’t know how else to say it,” says Ann Batten.
They call themselves the Forget-Me-Not Quilters, a group of ten women who are honored and proud to carry on a Bethel Lutheran Church tradition of helping others less fortunate.
“They started with very little bits of material and still put in the effort into making somebody else’s life more comfortable, and we’re able to carry on that legacy,” says Cindy Baur.
Karen Nichols was just a little girl when she first saw the church’s quilters in action.
“And I remember the old ladies that quilted, you know those old ladies, us, we are them now,” says Karen with a chuckle.
The average age of this current group is 76, but if ask any of them, they’ll tell you their time together makes them feel young.
“We’re standing the whole two days, but I’m never tired when I go home, I guess it’s just because it’s something you enjoy,” says Mary, now 88.
While Mary has helped make quilts since the early 1980′s, the rest of the ladies joined the group within the last 20 years. Some wondered what they had gotten into.
“When I first started coming it was old clothes and they’d have people all over ripping these old stinky clothes, it was horrible, I kept saying I’ll never go back, I’m never going to do that again, and here I am,” says Ann Batten with a smile.
“We had to tear, Ann probably told you, men’s topcoats and our dresses, all the things and we had to find middles or make them, we didn’t get all these nice sheets and stuff that we’re getting now,” adds Mary.
Times have certainly changed, and these quilters consider their group extremely blessed. Thanks to Thrivent grants, a local quilting shop, and two hotels, the quilts today are assembled with donated fabric, sheets, blankets, and batting. And because Bethel’s congregation is aging, more additional fabric is turning up than ever before.
“I don’t know if you know quilters or not, but they have a stash of material all the time, I mean my mouth drops when we get these donations, it’s like you’ve got to be kidding me, and it’s all beautiful materials nowadays, I said it’s just a joy to make things,” says Ann.
Over the last few years, these passionate retirees have assembled, pinned, tied, and sewn between 500 and 600 quilts per year. Each one is one-of-a-kind.
“What we put together sometimes is questionable, how does that look, that doesn’t match, and you put it all together and tie it together with some loud yarn of some kind or another, and they end up in beautiful quilts,” says Karen.
Each October, the quilts are boxed up and transported by train to Minneapolis for distribution.
While there’s always great joy in knowing their labor of love will be shipped all over the world, there’s equal joy in the time these ladies spend together.
“Oh immensely, they’re our support group, we’re here for each other. This is what got me through the pandemic. You know it’s just a joy, it’s just a way of life,” explains Ann.
If you spend some time with the Forget-Me-Knot Quilters, it’s so evident to see the love they have for each other and their mission to spread comfort around the world.
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