PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Merrimack Valley Quilting Guild

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2016-1017

President:

Ann Hockmeyer

Vice– President

Liz Swan

Secretary:

Bev Valle

Treasurer AP:

Elaine Rando

Treasurer AR:

Marianne Karp

Celebrating 37 years of encouraging the art of quilting in the Merrimack Valley. MVQ was established in 1980.

To reach any committee, please address corre-spondence to MVQ Guild PO Box 566 Haverhill. MA 01831 Newsletter items must be in to me by the 1st of each month: Pat.lucey@verizon.net

January 2017

January 19 Journeys Three talented members will demon-strate their Quilting Journey Sat. January 21stWorkshop: Open or Charity sew at Mary Kendall’s Studio in Derry, NH

Happy New Year! I hope you had a nice holiday with family and friends. I’ve already broken my reso-lution for the year and purchased much more fabric than I really need! I would like to thank Ronni

Longwell, Cathy Harnisch and Jeanne Elliot for a lovely Christmas party. The food, as always, was fabulous and your generosity of toiletries was overwhelming! All of the Haverhill locations that benefit-ed were so grateful. The items were donated to the Stevens-Bennett Home for Women, the Merrimack Valley Hospice House and Emmaus House. We’re already planning next year’s Christmas party and we’re looking for a few fun members to help with putting it together. Speak with Ronni if you like to party because she needs help! Our January meeting will include “Journeys”, where 3 members share their personal quilt journey. This is always a great and interesting night. We will also have a short presentation from our charity group. The Kulea Childcare Villages will make a short presentation so we can see the great work they do. February is our UFO Auction night. Please bring your UFO’s to the January meeting so we can organ-ize the auction. Minda Fowler will accept your donations and I thank you in advance for your generosi-ty. The quilt show is still looking for volunteers. The biggest need is to find someone to chair the food committee. Bev Valle is going to get the Serv-Safe Certificate that’s needed but we still need member(s) to chair the committee. Please see Diane Kelly or me if you can help. We will be forming a nominating committee soon and need 3 - 4 members to seek out members that can serve on next year’s board. We need a vice president and a treasurer. Please see, or call, any board member if you can help with this very im-portant task. We must have the nominees by the May meeting. New members are welcome and encouraged to fill a vacant seat on the board. Serving on the board is a great way to get to know others and make new friends. Let us know if you are considering a position so we can discuss the duties and responsibilities involved to help you make a decision. Many times the commitment is not as time consuming as you might think. The guild is growing steadily and running very smoothly but needs new board members to continue the progress (and fun) next year. See you on the 19th. Thank you, Ann

Judy Naylor and Betty Hastings co-chair Don’t forget to bring in your raffle tickets..

SEW and KNOW

Come and see what’s in store!

Sunshine Lady: Mary Jo Ray If you know of someone who needs a bit of sunshine in their life, please contact Mary Jo on her phone please!

Firstly, thank you all for your generous donations of hygiene items at the Christmas party. There were a multitude of items. They were delivered to the Stevens-Bennett Home for Ladies, Emmaus House and the Merrimack Valley Hospice House. They were so thrilled to receive them and your gifts have touched many people. Thank you again! Secondly, January is the last meeting to sign up for the February workshop with Marianne Karp. It is a beautiful tote bag and the class cost is ONLY $10. It will be held at Faith Lutheran Church in Andover starting at 9:30. Marianne needs to order patterns so please be sure you are all signed up. It promises to be a wonderful day. Thirdly, sign ups are now open for our April, May and June workshops - Marlous Carter for Visual Piecing, Becky Goldsmith for Applique and Pat Pauly for the new big leaf art quilt. Please stop by and sign up - they will fill up fast. Please note that the January workshop will be held at Mary Kendall's studio in Derry, NH. Work on your charity quilt for Ku-lea or any other project that needs your attention. It will be a fun day to be together and get to know one another. Thank you Mary for opening up your studio for us. We really appreciate it, especially at a time when space is so hard to come by. Lastly, I am looking for a person or two to chair the Christmas meeting next year. It is a fun time for everyone and would be very helpful to me if a couple of folks could take charge of that meeting. I would appreciate the help to make it extra special. Thank you all for your participation and enthusiasm! You are helping me to make this a fun year. I hope you are enjoying the programs and I welcome any and all input and feedback. with a special thank you to Cathy Harnisch for co-chairing with me at the last minute! You're the best! Thanks Ronni

KENNEBUNKPORT RETREAT Watch the blog after the first of the year for an-nouncement of registration for the spring retreat scheduled for March 29 through April 2. ……. and it certainly “seams” to continue.

2017-2018 MVQG Raffle Quilt I want to thank everyone who made a deposit and took a baggie or two to piece the blocks for the 2017-2018 Raffle Quilt. If you are having any problems or have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at liz@swanquilting.com. As a reminder, pieced blocks need to be returned at the March 2017 guild meeting or earlier. When you return your baggies, we will return your deposit. There are still baggies available and we will have com-mittee members in the lobby at the January 2017 guild meeting who will be happy to take your deposit and give you a baggie or two to piece. Members of the Raffle Quilt Committee are meeting for an open sew on Saturday, January 28, 2017 from 10 am to 4 pm at Aunt Mary’s Quilting, 43 Stark Road, Derry, NH, 03038 to piece blocks and help anyone that has a question or needs hands-on help to complete your block(s). All members are welcome to help piece blocks and begin the quilt assembly process. This is a great time to socialize, view the progress of this beautiful quilt and see Mary Kendall’s wonderful shop (FYI she sells fabric and kits!). Let me know if you have any questions, comments or suggestions. Thank you for your support! Elizabeth Swan 2017-2018 Raffle Quilt Committee Chairperson

Kulea Childcare Villages Thank you, everyone, for your interest in this charity. We have received 5 quilts so far! Two members from the Kulea board visited my studio just before Christmas and were awe struck by your talent and generosity. Please visit their Face-book page to see pictures. Kulea is coming to MVQG! Members from the Kulea Childcare Villages team will be at the January 2017 guild meeting. They will have a table in the lobby so that you can get information about the organization. Members will be dressed in their Kulea garb and will make a presentation to the guild at the meeting. As a reminder, we will be making the formal presentation of donated quilts to Kulea at our May 2017 guild meeting. I understand this is a month early and hope that you have enough time to finish your quilts. Any size quilt is acceptable; however, the team is respectively asking for twin size quilts (approximately 60” x 86”). Please contact me if you have any questions, com-ments or concerns. Thank you, so much, for your interest in Kulea Childcare Villages! Elizabeth Swan Vice President

MVQ TREASUER REPORT January 3, 2017 Elaine Rando

Checking Balance 10,875.84 Money Market 5,035.58 Annuity as of 6/30/16 15,695.66 TOTAL FUNDS $ 31,607.08 EXPENSES PAID: Program and Meeting - December 230.59 Web Renewal 55.00 NECC – January Rental 125.00 Travelers – Liability Ins. Renewal 250.00 NOTES: Liability and Bond Insurance are paid $437.00 P.O. Box Renewal Paid $160.00 Accountant and Tax Fees Paid $1,495.00 Deposit for March Retreat Paid $300.00

See Linda regarding questions about the Photo Roster [The MVQ paparazzi,] Linda Lydecker [See Linda about getting a copy if you don’t have e-mail!]

MVQ General Meeting Minutes – December 1, 2016 No Sew and Know before the Pot Luck Dinner meeting. Meeting called to order at 7:00 PM by President Ann Hockmeyer. Ann read a poem appropriate for the holidays. At every place at each table were 2017 Quilt Show informational flyers, with Sept 29 and 30, 2017 dates of the show at Hope Church, 9 to 4 PM. Ann is looking for someone who might have Serve Safe Certification to step up for the kitchen at the quilt show. She is also looking for a Demonstration chair. Deb Kelso is chair of the Challenge for the quilt show, each quilt shall be no larger than 100 inch perimeter. You must use some fabric that is being handed out on the front of the challenge quilt. The theme Liz Swan and Mary Wilkes talked about Charity Quilts. Please use light weight batting, size twin or smaller. These are due at the May meeting. Must be quilted, not tied. Liz also talked about the 2017-18 Raffle Quilt. 14 people helped organize this project. They have blocks prepared to have members sew and return, with a $5 fee, which will be returned when the block is completed and returned. Blocks are due in March. Please return as soon as possible. Do not use a scant ¼ inch on these blocks. Minda Fowler talked about collecting items for the UFO Auction in February. The last date to donate is the January 2017 meeting. Show and Tell. Break Diane Desjardins – Membership. 75 present tonight. One new member joined the guild tonight, Julie S. Welcome Julie! There was 1 guest, Michelle. The membership list has been sent out by email. If you don’t have email, see Diane for a paper copy. Bev V., Jane H. and Patty G. won membership raffle bags this month. Fabric Lottery won by Deb Z. (3 ½ yards of lovely fabric from the Red Barn.) The centerpiece poinsettias and ornaments on the tables, were won after play-ing a game of “left” and right”. The ornament went around the table and every time Ann used “left” and “right” in the story, the ornament changed direction going around the table in the current direction. Ronnie – Programs talked about the workshop with Kris Poore on Saturday, Dec. 3. The January workshop has an open date for charity or open sew time. Ronnie introduced Kris Poore from Poore House Quilts. Meeting adjourned at 9:00 PM. Respectfully submitted by, Beverly Valle, Secretary

THE QUILTED CANVAS The Crit Group: 30 Years and Still Quilting January 11 through April 29, 2017

January 19 17

Journeys Sat. Workshop: Open or Chari-ty sew

February 16, 17

UFO Sat. Workshop- member led tote bag {Marianne Karp}

March 16, 17

Sue Reich, Historian “Crazy as a Bed Quilt”- historical crazy quilts

Sat Workshop: Open or Charity sew

April 20,17

Marlous Carter from Marlous Designs

“Visual piecing from her book “Wonky One Block

Quilts”

Sat Workshop: Visual piecing (No way to do it wrong quilt

design

May 18, 17

Becky Goldsmith – Piece O” Cake

“A Practical Approach to Color”

FRI Workshop: My Whimsical Quilt Garden from her book.

June 15, 17

Pat Pauly “The New Face of Art Quilts’ trunk

show.

Sat Workshop: “The New Big Leaf”

Where can I find: Quilt-quality fabric? Needles? Pins? Patterns? Interfacing? Muslin? 108” fabric? Flannel? Discounts? Art Greeting Cards? Templates? Cutters? Olfa Mats? Rulers? Books?

http://AtQuiltersQuar-ters.blogspot.com 59 North Street Georgetown MA 01833 ‘Just 2 doors north of Perley School’

: https://atquiltersquarters.blogspot.com/

Next Meeting January 19th NECC) Technology Building Doors open at 6:00 for set-up and socializing!

Jeanne Elliott QuiltsEtc@aol.com Beginning Tole

Painting Beginning quilt-

ing Professional quilt-

ing of your quilts!

Quilting by Catherine .Hand Guided Long Arm Machine Quilting Custom Quilting

Edge to edge Binding Basting for Hand Quilting http://cquilts.wordpress.com/

603-490-0165 978-682-0165

Catherine-Quilts@comcast.net Methuen

Refreshments: GRefreshments: GRefreshments: G---LLL

A Personal Note to all my Friends at MVQA Personal Note to all my Friends at MVQA Personal Note to all my Friends at MVQ MVQ has been such a great part of my life for many yearsMVQ has been such a great part of my life for many yearsMVQ has been such a great part of my life for many years--- I am grateful for all the old friends and the new ones that I I am grateful for all the old friends and the new ones that I I am grateful for all the old friends and the new ones that I have met in this terrific organization.have met in this terrific organization.have met in this terrific organization. Thank you to all who have supported me Thank you to all who have supported me Thank you to all who have supported me during this time of my medical need. during this time of my medical need. during this time of my medical need. Love you all: Pat LuceyLove you all: Pat LuceyLove you all: Pat Lucey