That Blue Quilt

I continue to be humbled at the far-reaching care and concern so many from this valley offer to others.  I’ll be honest,  it has been a long time, since I gave the catastrophe in Chernobyl much thought.

The Children of Chernobyl, Ellensburg’s official state charity description:

Humanitarian; host children from the Chernobyl region providing a health respite from their environment while the community medical professionals provide pro bono health/dental care. Support orphans in Rudensk, Belarus through sponsorships.

Children of Chernobyl come for 5 weeks in the summer to enjoy the beauty and benefits of our valley.  They leave with quilts.  The quilt group that had been making the quilts, all these years, no longer felt up to the challenge as their numbers had decreased due to aging.

‘Would we take over making the quilts?’ Our group was asked, which was how I came to be making a quilt for a boy.  It is common for us to make quilts for others, that is the whole point after all.  It is a teeny, tiny bit trickier to make a quilt for someone from another country.  You want them to like/love their quilt… You do not want to mess it up by adding something on it, that does not ‘translate’ well.  We work with donated fabric and so whatever is in the bin is what gets used.

I went with blues.  Carefully sorting out the blues with flowers, of which there is plenty.

I keep a small bit of polka dots as I have a soft spot for polka dots (and gingham).  I searched Pinterest for a neutral, but interesting design.  I believe I have learned most about quilting first from the generous gals at my quilt group and second from the generous quilters on Pinterest.  Water/Waves  deserves high praise for this well written pattern.
Simple strips of blue move together to create this optical beauty.Who would have ever thought that by moving to a small country town, my gifts and my giving could expand so greatly!…and I am blessed.