In mid-June we started a two-part fundraising campaign to raise money for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund that supports students and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). We auctioned our Outside the Box quilt on eBay and set up a charity GoFundMe for Thurgood Marshall College Fund. Our delay in reporting back the results of the fundraiser resulted from a hold that eBay put on the funds because the winning bid was considered a high-ticket item. However we can officially announce that together with you we have raised a total of $2,750 for Thurgood Marshall College Fund and the final payment will be made tomorrow. We are so appreciative of all of the donations that were raised for this worthy charity, which is highly ranked for its management on Charity Navigator.

We launched this fundraiser to draw attention to the chronic underfunding of education in Black communities and are grateful for your help in raising these funds for HBCUs, which have been especially hard-hit during Covid-19. The winning bid for our Outside the Box quilt was $1,300 by a bidder who purchased it in memory of a friend and has asked that it be donated to the International Quilt Museum where it will be kept with our Pick-Up Sticks quilt, which we donated last year as the first Modern quilt in their collection.

We will continue to look for ways to use our work and resources to improve equity for those whose voices have gone unheard for far too long. If you missed our fundraiser and would like to donate directly to Thurgood Marshall College Fund, click here.

A Remembrance by Bill Kerr

I experienced the transformative scale and beauty of Christo’s wrapping of the Pont Neuf, which I crossed daily on my way to fall classes during my junior year abroad in Paris in 1985. While Parisians didn’t all agree on its artistic merit, it brought people together. Like so many others, I got off the metro one stop early just to cross the bridge. I left a little early each day not just to walk its expanse but to make time for the wonderful conversations that inevitably happened on the overlooks that were crowded in a way I’d never seen.

More than a decade later I was a student again, this time in Chicago for graduate school. In the hallways of my school, I saw a poster announcing an upcoming lecture by Christo and his wife Jeanne-Claude. I excitedly told Weeks who was as eager as I to hear them. I told my program director of my admiration for their work and of my experiences on the Pont Neuf. He asked if I’d like to join them and a few others for brunch. Of course!

Christo and Jeanne-Claude were at ease with everyone. Professors and students shared stories of seeing their work whether from Germany to California. Both during the breakfast and later during the public lecture, Christo deftly guided the conversation away from his art and toward to the process of building consensus.

While many famous artists tell students to “pursue your dreams”, Christo didn’t say this, he showed us what he was doing. He showed early sketches from the late 1970s of the Gates project he envisioned for Central Park. He told stories of working with city administration, starting anew as elections changed those in power. He also explained how he worked with local residents, refuse workers and construction crews, getting them all to care and be invested in the work. He knew how to make things happen. In 2005 the 7503 gates became a stunning reality.

To this day I admire his work for its beauty, but what impacted me most was his dedication and determination. He was a true leader, bringing people together for the common good.

All this week Benartex is leading Precut Project Hop on their social media platforms with fabric designers and bloggers from all over sharing their favorite patterns made with precuts and tips for working with them. Amazingly the Precut Project Hop is timed perfectly for the arrival of our latest publication Fat Quarter Love 3. Some of the projects feature only fat quarters and some pair fat quarters with additional yardage used for sashing or as a field fabric. We love the versatility of fat quarters and find them the easiest to work with among all precuts. One of the great things about precuts is that you can get a wide variety of prints without having to buy more yardage than you need.

In addition Benartex is sponsoring a giveaway during the hop to celebrate National Quilt Month. On both Facebook and Instagram you’ll find details through March 27 with the winners announced March 28.  The Grand Prize is an Ever Sewn sewing machine and there will be two 1^st prizes of three precut fabric bundles with one winner each on Facebook and Instagram. There will be two 2^nd prizes of one precut fabric bundle as well.

Here are some of the projects that will be featured in our new publication. Ask your LQS if they will be carrying it and are open. If you can’t find it locally, we ship free to US addresses and charge exact postage for international orders. Click here to Order Fat Quarter Love 3.

Hop on over to see how others are using precuts to shorten cutting time and to make their quilting more fun and affordable.