Congratulations, Susan and Mary Pat!

On September 6, I shared info about Quilters Take A Moment, the Quilt Alliance’s pandemic-related retooling of the every-other-year event that usually takes place in New York City. Like so many happenings we love, QTM couldn’t be the hug-filled gathering it usually is, and I urged all my readers to check out the wonderful lineup for the virtual event and participate. I also offered two free passes.

Huge thanks to the dozens of you who entered the drawing! I wrote each one on a scrap of paper exactly the same size, folded them all up, and (as promised) put them in an actual hat. That’s my husband Mark, stirring, before drawing the first name last Friday. (Nicknamed “The Captain” by my family, Mark is a retired Air Force and commercial pilot who takes all tasks seriously.)*

Susan from St. Louis was Friday’s winner. “I never imagined I would win!” she wrote back when I contacted her. Susan is looking forward to presentations from Julie Silber and Dr. Mazloomi. She’s a big fan of antique quilts, particularly Amish ones and African American-made ones like those created in Gee’s Bend. Her husband was a Marine Corps pilot, so we have pilot-husbands in common.

Here’s Mark again (smiling this time) after he drew the second name on Sunday.

Sunday’s winner was Mary Pat from Wisconsin. Mary Pat has recently retired and is hoping to finally have time to complete many of the projects she has started over the years. [Note to Mary Pat, try to think of them as “pre-started” rather than “unfinished.] Regarding making quilts in general, she says she loves it all, “from the cutting to the piecing to the binding.” She hasn’t done any long arm quilting yet but plans on getting a machine after she does some research.

Mary Pat was thrilled to learn she can use her free ticket to watch the lectures and presentations online at any time after the event if she can’t tune in September 25-26. That works for everyone, so those of you who did not win, please jump to here and sign up now even if you are already booked for that weekend!

The Quilt Alliance is a 501c3 nonprofit established in 1993. Its mission is “to document, preserve, and share our American quilt heritage by collecting the rich stories that historic and contemporary quilts, and their makers, tell about our nation’s diverse peoples and their communities.”

See you all soon!

*Photos by Marianne Fons. Used by permission.