Due to a lack of new members, the Carbon Quilters Guild has recently taken the decision to disband.
“It was sad, we did a good job and we enjoyed what we did there,” said Alice McIntosh, now former Guild member.
“We have had great support, volunteers galore helping with our shows, our husbands stepped up too to help. People came from everywhere to come to the shows.”
The idea of the Guild came up in May 1995, when three ladies, Dorothy Horne, Mary Cadman and Janice Montgomery sat around a table and discussed how to raise money for the Farmer’s Exchange building in Carbon.
They came up with the idea of creating a quilt to illustrate the people and plans of Carbon and got to work.
The idea took off and a guild was formed: the Carbon Heritage Quilters Guild.
Although the group was Alberta’s Handicrafters Guild’s smallest branch, with as few as three members and at the most eight, the Guild enjoyed very successful events.
All in aid of helping their community, the group organized 10 quilt shows which were successful family fun events and raffled off 11 quilts to raise money for organizations and causes.
They also organized quilts challenges within the group and quilted to help residents in time of need, to give comfort to those affected by tragedy or help when life was difficult.
Recently, due to lack of members, the ladies decided to close down the Guild.
However, in the spirit that started the Guild, the current members, Alice McIntosh, Dorothy Nygard and Dorothy Horne, wanted to ensure the community benefitted from this decision. They decided to donate the money raised from selling the equipment and supplies to local groups.
A total of $6,500 was raised and donated to the Carbon Library, to buy Audio and books, the Carbon Fire Department, to go towards the purchase of a new rescue truck, the Wellness Centre, to help upgrade or replace some of the equipment in their exercise room and finally, the Carbon and Area Restoration Society (CAARS), to help them with building maintenance and who are currently renovating the Farmer’s Exchange building.
Alice McIntosh told The Mail “It is disheartening, quilting has been around for ever, it is an art and craft that comes and goes I guess...We’d like to see it carry on, but maybe in a few hours, somebody else will start it up again.”
The Guild ladies told The Mail they will carry on quilting and will take with them the great friendships they have developed through the Guild.
