ECW DIOCESAN QUILT Plans to make a quilt for the Atlanta Diocese were begun by the Executive Board of the Episcopal Church Women, Diocese of Atlanta in 1995. Barbara Alexander from Church of the Incarnation and Mary Parris from the Cathedral of St. Philip were instrumental in getting the project started. From 1996-1999, women from throughout the diocese and memabers of the Board lovingly handmade each of the unique squares that you see on the quilt. Jennie Priven of St. Clare's in Blairsville and a quilter from the Diocesan Board volunteered to assemble the finished product. The quilt was happily presented for the first time at the ECW Diocese of Atlanta Annual Meeting on October 19, 2002.

Here are some of Jennie's notes on putting the quilt together:

"I chose to take on the job of putting all the blocks together, and at first glance, several quilters said it could not be done. There were many blocks that needed to be stabilized before they could be put together. It was a chore at times and even when the blocks were ready to be put together, the placement needed to be just right, so that none of them would clash against each other and they would complement each other.

In the process of doing all of this, it was evident that each blockspoke for the parish it represented. Some of the parishes had no one to make a block, so someone on the Board made it for them. This doesn't mean they count less. It means that whoever made their block for them cared enough to make their parish count. There is one block that represents a church where the structure is no longer used, but it is still represented. The craftmanship of each block varies. In the end, it came down to the love of God, and the love of the church for this to have happened (and the desire of Mary Parris)."

The quilt measures 100 inches wide by 92 inches long. There are 100 completed squares and 10 empty blocks available for parishes or other organizations in the Diocese. It is available for display at parish events and will be displayed at Diocesan functions.

We are proud to present this quilt to the Diocese of Atlanta and thank all the women who have made this gift possible

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN DISPLAYING THE ECW QUILT, CONTACT JOAN MCCUMBER,404 284-6622 OR jrmduck@comcast.net.

ECW QUILT BLOCK CONSTRUCTION

To construct a square to be added to the ECW quilt, it is preferable to use all cotton materials. The finished square should be 10 inches by 10 inches so that the finished block can be trimmed to an 8 ½ inch square.

It can be any design that best represents your parish or group.

Use ¼ inch seams to reduce bulk.

Decorative threads and trims are acceptable.

Please do not do anything that will make the block too stiff to apply to the quilt.

If you are using applique, make sure it is sewn around all the sides of the applique design - the quilt is folded and unfolded many times. Any appliques that are not sewn all the way around might, with time, come off of your block.

Light weight counted cross stitch is fine, as long as the whole block is easy to handle.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON ADDING A SQUARE TO THE ECW QUILT, CONTACT GAIL MYERS, 770 461-0004 OR pgsmyers30215@yahoo.com.