Bags Of Love is my favorite. There is always a need. Sometimes its the only new thing these children get.

Downy quilts for kids and the Alzheimers Art Quilt Initiative.

I donate a quilt yearly for a fund raiser for Multiple Sclerosis {M.S.} Every little bit helps to find a CURE..

There are lots of charities out there who want our quilts.
I have a few that I give away and don't worry or be concerned about where they go. However for the bulk of even the simple quilts I want to know how they are being used. For instanve, I no long make quilts for the nursery at the local hospital. However, I make them because they are going to children in respietory therapy unit. I no longer make a quilt for a loal Christma event beause I thought my smal piece which had taken me off an on over a week to make was not being autioned but given a a door prize. For me it is more satisfying to know where they are going and how they are being used.

I have donated to Wounded Warriors, and am presently working on a rag quilt for a Breast Cancer fundraiser.

people with ASL (Lou Gerhigs Disease). My son was diagnosed last year. He is 34 years old.

Project Linus and Quilts of Valor

exactly...

I make lap quilts for the Breast cancer patients at the hospital going through treatments ad I am a survivor of 7 years and also do the 3 day 60 mile walks every october.

My miniature horse club does baby blankets for unwed mothers home, quilt pads for seniors, hats and scarves for mentaly challenged young adults, childrens home, and the list goes on. Also mistakes that can't be fix go to the animal shelter.. Also doing horse quilt to raffle at one of our shows. We answer all calls and pick what we have the time to do, spring/summer is horse's late fall until spring is handiwork...

Quilts of Valor www.qovf.org
One way I do this is:
I always make a test block when I start a quilt. For years now I make the test block in red/white/blue. When I have enough I add borders if needed so they are all 12.5 inches square and VOILA, I have what I need for a sampler quilt. A bit of sashing and a border or 2 and off they go to a volunteer longarm quilter.

Quilts of Valor. Our warriors give us their best ALL the time.

I give them to local people that lose their homes due to fires/tornados or here in south Mississippi hurricanes.
I give them to anyone that I can find that needs them and I don't have to pay to ship.

Our local quilt club is collecting them for Japan.

Quilts of Valor for the homecoming troops is my very favorite.

QOV is not for homecoming troops, but for troops that are injured during their service during war times.

There are MANY organizations claiming to be sending quilts to troops..and many troops claiming they have never received one!

It is hard these days to tell who is legit and who is just a scam.

If you are sending a quilt to a QOV person outside of your state, it is probably a scam. Each state has a rep and the quilts should be going to that rep. Make sure you contact people before sending anything anywhere and never mark a box "quilt" on the outside or on the customs label!

I am surprised that nobody is making quilts for Homefront Quilts!
They are quilts for the surviving families of lost troops. My family and I have made over 130 for them!

A dear quilting friend -- hmm, I need to tell her about this board -- makes prayer quilts with friends at her church. Members and friends of members ask for quilts for persons they know who are ill or in need of support for other reasons. The lap quilts are usually simple block patterns with fabric chosen specifically for the recipient. For example, a person who loves butterflies and the color purple might get one with purple butterfly fabric.

When a quilt is ready to be tied, members of the church are asked to each do a tie and say a prayer for the recipient. It seems like such a wonderful way to give someone an emotional boost.

Mississippi guild is collecting via the quilter's newsletter Japanese contact.

Plea for Comfort Quilts for Japan
Posted by: "Valerie Hearder" [email protected] raindrizzlefog
Thu Mar 17, 2011 6:49 am (PDT)
"This morning I received an email from Naomi Ichikawa, Editor of Patchwork Quilt Tsushin Magazine.
Naomi lives in Tokyo and her mother and brother survived the tsunami in Sendai.

Naomi asked me to please spread the word about the plea for comfort quilts.
I hope you can help with this.
best,
Valerie

Here is Naomi's request:

Dear Valerie
It is still bad situation now in Japan.
We are still nervous about shaking and radiation,but no way to escape.

I start to announce to the quilters to send us comfort quilts for the
people who are suffered.I would like to do it to the world quilters.
We will deliver the comfort quilts to the people who are very difficult
situation.
Could you please help to announce it to the quilters?

We accept any size of quilts(baby to adult).new or unused.
The deadline would be the end of May or later.

?Send the quilts to:
(until the middle of April)
Naomi Ichikawa,Editor of Patchwork Quilt tsushin
Patchwork Tsushin Co.,Ltd
5-28-3,Hongo,Bunkyo-ku,Tokyo,Japan zip:113-0033

(after the middle of April)
Naomi Ichikawa
Patchwork Tsushin Co.,Ltd
2-21-2,Yushima,Bunkyo-ku,Tokyo,Japan zip:113-0034

I will appreciate if you help me.

Naomi

jaciqultznok Thank you for posting the request from Japan. I will put two childrens quilts in the mail tomorrow morning. God Bless the Peoples of Japan.

Our guild is working on pillowcase for the VA, and children's hospital, also we do lap quilts for the Hospice Ctr. located in our county. Also we do small quilts for the local police and sheriff's dept., for children that are taken out of their homes due to certain problems.

I belong to a local quilt group that completes about 60-75 "service quilts" every year. They are donated to local agencies serving the young and the very old. About twice a year, we go through the stack of finished quilts and, as a group, decide which go to local nursing homes, which to local agencies serving children or adolescents. A few are reserved for our annual auction and the proceeds donated to local agencies. It's a wonderful feeling and a great opportunity to experiment with color and pattern that might be a little outside your usual.

Lap quilts are always needed at our County home. A great many residents do not have family and appreciate all homemade things and just the idea that someone cares about them. Also nursing homes can always use lap quilts.

[/quote]It is hard these days to tell who is legit and who is just a scam.
If you are sending a quilt to a QOV person outside of your state, it is probably a scam. Each state has a rep and the quilts should be going to that rep. Make sure you contact people before sending anything anywhere and never mark a box "quilt" on the outside or on the customs label![/quote]


NOT TRUE really.
Quilts of Valor, QOV, is for all servicemembers who "have been touched by war"
When you submit a finished quilt and request a 'destination' it is often an 'out of state' destination. They go where the need is greatest and on the destination request form there is even a place where you can request where the quilt goes and to which branch of service the person served with.
Yes there are state coordinators but the website www.qovf.org is the national site. Not every state has a state rep so you can use the national site instead.

I have been a coordinator for Project Linus for the past 6-7 years. It is not unusual for me to have 50+ "blankies" in my house at any given time. Gerry

I'm a member of a yahoo group called Sunshine Quilter's Online Guild and we quilt for two children's groups. One sends quilts along with the medical teams that repair children's cleft palates (like Smile Train) and the other send quilts to children in orphanages and missions worldwide (including the USA). See more on these two groups at:
http://www.rotaplast.org/partners/wrapasmile.php
and
http://www.wraptheminlove.org/

You can also google Sunshine Quilter's Online Guild to get to that site. The quilts are smaller since they are child-size and work up quickly. It's very gratifying and I hope you find a donation group that you love. Bless your heart for thinking of others in your retirement.

BTW, I just noticed that your location is in Maine. The group I mentioned in an earlier message called Wrap-a-Smile is affiliated with the Rotary Club in Wells, Maine! What a coincidence ...

Happy Quilting.

I am in psychiatric therapy for clinical depression, and my therapy group makes quilts for long term foster care children. We also buy thrift shop back-packs and suitcases so the kids will have something to carry their quilts in when they move from home to home. This is much better therapy than just sitting around talking about your problems. I always feel warm and fuzzy after two hours of quilt making with my group.

Most of my charity quilts go to either Project Linus or the battered women's center in our county. I have also sewn for breast cancer causes and binky blankets for war efforts (this one has been disbanded because of lack of funds for shipping to soldiers overseas--how sad). My goal this year is to make charity pillowcases since I have a lot of good fabric in small quantities which would make great accent bands. I also would like to make some Quilts of Valor for wounded soldiers. Just way too many places that need items. Thank you to all who help made charity quilts. And, may our fingers be blessed with years of sewing.

So true, Granny Coy! I live with arthritis and making charity quilts keeps me active and of sound mind--rather than whining about the aches and pains.

You might also check with your local cancer treatment centers. Our guild has made several lap size quilts for a center one of our members was receiving treatment from. The patients like to wrap up in them during treatment and often request the same quilt each time. Sometimes they are so attached to their special quilt, they are given the quilt at the end of treatment.

I have always given local. Our fire department took some in the past, as well as pillow cases. When they get to the fire the family members have often grabbed what they could before they got out. The pillow cases are handy for the photo albums and other treasures. The quilts of course, are keeping the little homeless ones warm while they are waiting to go to a safe place. Our women's shelter is always happy to have them.

Our local guild has done pillow cases for kids with cancer and the area Shrine hospital as well as lap quilts for home nursing agency and nursing homes. My project right now is sewing weighted lap pads which are helpful for kids with autism and ASHD. They are 2 pound pads (fill with poly pellets) and we have given several away with good success.
There are now 2 groups in my area who are going to make them for kids

Project Linus is my area. We are able to make and donate quilts and blankets for children all over Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma because we have the St.Jude's satellite hospital here as a part of St. John's. Springfield is the big hub for this part of the state and with St. John's being a level 1 treatment facility.

quilts of valor, pregnancy resource center, and nursing homes

These pillow cases are loved by the kids! :-P :thumbup: My cousins 8 yr old daughter was hit by a van last yr (she's fine now) and someone had donated pretty pillow cases for the children. She was so happy to be able to take hers home with her. Just thought you'd like to know these pillow cases do bring a smile to the kids.

I have not read through all 6 pages of responses, so this post may be a repeat. I also am retired and, alas, trying to live on a very limited Social Security income, so there is not much money available to buy fabrics all the time. Then I discovered http://www.quiltsforkids.org which sends you quilt kits for you to complete. You supply the batting, assemble and quilt the project and provide the packaging and postage to return the quilt to them. They distribute these quilts to children's hospitals and NICU's all over the country.

This keeps me busy all day, I feel as though I am doing something to help sick children, and it doesn't cost me too much.

The organization does request that you send them one of your own quilts as often as you can to supplement the kits, which is what I try to do at least once a month and I feel as though I am contributing at least a little. I make NICU-size quilts which are only 38" square and don't require a lot of fabric so the expense isn't too bad. I just watch for sales and also use coupons at Joann's.

Hope this helps and that you find a charity that "fits" your situation. There certainly are a lot of wonderful suggestions here.

Have done Downy, St Jude, local women's shelters, the neo-natal units at our local hospitals.

Each member in our Guild makes a quilt each year for the Childhood Development Chapter in our county. They go to children. I also donate baby quilts to our local hospital for babies and ones in the cancer unit. I like to do for the local community.
SandyGail

what a wonderful idea! thanks for sharing :-)

I make quilts for Rainbows Baby and Childrens Hospital as well as memory quilts for University hospital.

I just started in Dec to volunteer at our local hospice. I am going to try and get 4 special light weight quilts for them to use when a patient passes. That way its a bit nicer for the family to say there goodbyes. Right now they are just in the bed with the hospital sheets. I also volunteered to wash them when needed.

Not real sure yet what kind of design but thought I could embroider angel squares . Would love to applique one quilt BUT i'm real new at that so not too sure.