perfect pathways...

never have my paths crossed more perfectly than in this new quilt shop of ours. i never set out to own a fabric store. but then who ever really knows the exact path their life will take. i'm often asked about my background by new customers. i've been sewing since i was seven. i started quilting as a teenager. mostly self taught. by degree, i am a social worker. i earned my bssw from bowling green and my masters from ohio state. i have worked with abused children, battered women and victims of rape. for years i raised money for united way to help support social service programs. i have been the executive director of the american heart association in cleveland. in each one of these jobs i found a way to incorporate fabric and thread into the lives of the ones we served.

today tom gregoire, the dean of the college of social work at the ohio state university came to visit our new shop. i have been sharing some of what we have been doing...employing young adults with developmental disabilities, stitching pillowcases for young cancer patients being treated at local hospitals, making quilts for families who have adopted a baby living in an orphanage, and appliqueing sunbursts onto onesies for new parent visits by a local support group. we are not alone in this endeavor. quilt shops for years have been a place of social support and friendship building. women have been hosting quilting bees for centuries for the same purposes. i know that intellectually, it's just i've never before witnessed the interaction so closely. with my own eyes. on a daily basis. how enriched and blessed i am. and how aware i have become of the human importance of local quilt shops.