Giving something useful back to the community is always worthwhile, and as every family at some time or other is touched by illness, accident or tragedy, if that ‘something’ can provide a bit of comfort during a difficult time then I think that is doubly good to do. Victoria’s Quilt s Canada is probably not very well known – certainly people always seem surprised to hear about it when we talk about it, but this is a group of volunteer quilters from across Canada that produces hand made quilts as gifts to patients dealing with cancer. The quilts themselves are beautiful, and the amount of donated material, craftsmanship and time that goes into each one continues to amaze me. These are offered by Victoria’s Quilts Canada to cancer patients in response to requests by a family member, friend or relative – and at no cost to the person receiving the quilt. Here in the Calgary Victoria’s Quilts Chapter, there are about forty-five full time members plus probably an additional thirty or forty quilters who contribute time and additional resources. Its a very good cause.
Shell Canada Ltd. offers Community Service Fund cash grants of varying amounts to specified groups, charities and organisations in which Shell staff and retirees participate, and in 2008 Shell Canada Ltd. donated more than $490,000 to some 350 organisations across Canada benefiting directly from this programme.
Today I was very pleased to present to the Calgary Victoria’s Quilts executive, a generous cheque from Shell Canada Ltd. , which was gratefully received, and which will be used to fund the cost of materials used in the production of quilts for cancer patients in the Calgary and surrounding area. In the presentation photo to the right we have the Calgary Victoria’s Quilt executive who are (from left): Laura Deschner (Vice-President), Sharron Blaine (President), Marilyn Lichtenstein (Treasurer), myself doing the presentation and Donna Sandy (Secretary).
If you want to make a contribution of either fabric (please be sure to check the specifications before donating fabric) or money, or if you are a quilter and want to donate some of your own time just contact the national office or the branch closest to you.
At the moment, this is a North American group, but I suspect groups will eventually pop up in other countries – I think its needed.