Quilt Show honors sponsors, volunteers

It may look like magic when 1,300 quilts go up on buildings all around downtown Sisters during the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, but it's not.

It's the result of hours and hours of work by hundreds of volunteers, undergirded by support from event sponsors. According to Quilt Show Executive Director Ann Richardson, more than 500 volunteers did 715 different jobs and donated 2,500 hours to support the show.

The Quilt Show organization thanked all those volunteers and sponsors with a reception and dinner at Black Butte Ranch on Thursday, July 14. The volunteer appreciation event was sponsored by Bi-Mart and U.S. Bank, who in turn were recognized at the sponsorship reception.

"These two groups of people are what make the show possible," Richardson said.

Sponsorship is critical for the quilt show, since there can be no revenue from ticket sales.

"As you may have noticed," Richardson quipped, "this is a free show; there is no ticket."

The success of the show allows donation back into the community of approximately $15,000 to $20,000.

"We certainly appreciate the opportunity to do that," Richardson said.

Kathey Heaney was named Volunteer of the Year.

"Kathey worked in the show office, hung quilts, took them down, worked in the activity area on show day, sold raffle tickets, delivered - and will pick up -sponsor quilts," Richardson told The Nugget. "Every time I turned around, there she was. And she does that year after year. She volunteered over 45 hours this year."

For her part, Heaney says that Richardson herself is a motivator for volunteer efforts.

"(She is) a wonderful person to work for," she said. "She's so appreciative and so kind and so fun."

Heaney said she felt honored to be singled out for an award.

"It was just a total surprise," she said. "There are so many people that do so much work."

Heaney reckons she's been volunteering for seven or eight years, after being bitten by the quilting bug.

She says she was drawn to "the variety, the challenges. There's just no end to how creative you want to be... It's the first hobby I've had that I stuck with."

Team Leader Sally Blust was recognized with a "Step Above" Award.

"The team leaders coordinate the quilt hanging & take down in a section of town," Richardson said. "Sally's been helping for years and also organizes a group of kids to help with take-down. "

Representatives of dozens of sponsors and more than 100 volunteers enjoyed a pleasant evening at the Lodge at Black Butte Ranch, looking out over Lake Phalarope toward the Three Sisters, perhaps soaking in inspiration for that next project...

Author Bio

Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.

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