20090803 - Busy July

July was a very busy month for me. In May, I had this idea for a Christmas in July Charity Sew for our Quilt Guild. I thought making Christmas Stockings would be fun and maybe nice idea for some charity. I checked with the Green Valley Assistance Services to see if they could recommend an organization. And they were the one! Turns out that they, along with the Salvation Army, make up Christmas gift boxes for the local families in need. Last year the families that they provided for had 492 children.
I modified a pattern I had of a Christmas Stocking to make it simpler and easier to make. It is just a matching stocking cut from 2 fabrics one of which becomes the lining and the cuff and the other the outside of the stocking. I made a sample stocking and a presentation to the Guild Board and they approved the idea. Part of the idea was to publicize the event to the Guild Members as both a stash buster (most of us have Christmas fabric in our stashes) and charity sew-in with the goal of making 500 stockings. We asked people to donate any Christmas fabric they had during May and June and provided copies of the pattern and instructions to anyone who wanted to make stockings ahead of time.
Along the way, the Quail Creek Quilters decided to help so they too began collecting fabric and making stockings.
The Guild Charity Bee took the early fabric and made up fat quarter kits. On July 9th the Guild Board, the Guild Program Committee, and the Quail Creek Quilters had a “Prime the Pump” Party where we made more stocking templates, cut stockings, and made more kits so that the members arriving to the Sew-In would have something to start with no matter what task they wanted to do. I and my Programs partner made up 60 baby stockings as Thank You’s and name tags for the participants at the event. The babies are the same stocking pattern just much smaller
On July 23rd the Guild had an all day session where about 40 ladies made about 300 stockings. We started the day with 100 Stockings that members had already made so by the end of the day we had close to 400 stockings. We spent from 8:00am until 3:00pm working, with a lunch break for Pizza. People arrived and left according to their own schedules. Some folks cut Fat quarters sets, others cut the fats into stockings and linings, others sewed the stockings and others were turned and ironed the finished stockings. It was a great day!
On July 31st the Quail Creek Quilters had their sew day. We also spent a full day with about 20 ladies working. We had 95 completed stockings at the end of the day. We also had some stockings at the beginning of the day.
Regina Ford,  Lifestyle Editor for the Green Valley News came to the Christmas Charity Sew on July 23rd and took pictures for the newspaper.  It has already bee published, although I have to admit I did not see the photo or the article.
I pretty much used up all my “Moving & Shaking" energy for the month as the lead for both events. I believe that leading a group takes “Moving and Shaking“ energy. Moving & Shaking energy is either a different kind or different level of energy and there is a limit on how much I have at any time.
We will not be delivering the Stockings until October so we are continuing to receive stockings from both groups. The Guild members have completed at least 85 more stockings and the Quail Creek Quilters have another 20-30. I believe we will have in excess of 600 stockings. Pretty exciting!
Green Valley Assistance Services usually provides their families with school supplies in September but this year the Salvation Army is going to do this. Then in December, Green Valley Assistance Services will provide a second set of school supplies with their Christmas. The kids will get 1 wish gift and additional school supplies (I expect in the stockings).