September 03, 2009
Quilts for “gateway of hope”
Langley Salvation Army envoy Gary Johnson sits on Mayor Peter Fassbender’s bike, as Coun. Steve Ferguson and MP Mark Warawa prepare to join the Ride for Mercy, August 29. The event was a fundraiser for the Sally Ann’s Gateway of Hope facility in Langley City. - HARRY HUNT PHOTO
Over a year ago the Langley Quilters’ Guild oversaw a project to make 55 bed-sized quilts for the Salvation Army’s “Gateway of Hope” project being built at 5787 Langley Bypass, Langley.
The Langley quilters set a goal of completing 25 quilts by October, and already have 38 quilts finished well ahead of their goal. Troy Gaglardi, representative for the “Gateway of Hope”, was presented with the quilts at the guild meeting, where the quilts were “aired” for all to see and enjoy.
No two quilts were the same. They were varied in pattern and color ways, and visually exciting to view.
Carrie Magee of the Langley Quilters’ Guild says, “All of the quilts were produced by the guild, mainly at quilting bees but also individually by members. The quilts that were made at the bees were made with donated fabric, or with fabric purchased by the guild.”
Louise McTague, past president of the guild, now living at Shuswap lake, did a huge amount of quilting the colourful and varied pieced tops made by the guild, to the batting and backing. Her husband, when commuting to the lower mainland would pick up and drop off the quilts. She attended the July meeting to see the turnover of the quilts to the “Gateway of Hope”.
Troy Gaglardi presented an overview to the guild members of this exciting project which provides help and assistance to “vulnerable and marginalized” people in Langley, not only with emergency shelter, but includes training programs, counselling services, transitional beds, a kitchen and meal center, even a pet kennel and cart and bicycle storage. Troy fielded many questions from the members about this new facility in their backyard scheduled to open in October 2009.
Langley Quilters’ Guild, with its’ 160 members, supplies quilts to a wide range of local initiatives, notably wheelchair and lap quilts for extended care, Ishtar Transition House, victims services, fire department, Alzheimer’s society, and many more. The minimum donation of quilts by the guild per year is 100 but often exceeds that.
