CHERYL MCELROY

Warming the Heart, Body, and Soul 

 

 

With the weather getting colder and the days feeling shorter, it is the perfect season to curl up with a good book and a snuggly quilt. Quilts dutifully warm the body, but they also warm the heart and soul. The beauty of a quilt is in the rich colors, the differing textures, the comforting feel, and the stories that it unfolds.

 

“Quilting is a real ministry,” describes West Lafayette, Indiana quilter Judith Kornafel. “While the fabrics have a healing, a soothing property to them, the quilt seems to provide a comforting element that unveils stories.” 

​

A quilt is created by putting together seeming mix-matched pieces that with patience and a little love, becomes a beautiful life all its own. Judy shared the story of an unfinished quilt her brother-in-law asked her to complete for his wife. It was a mixture of fabrics that spread across multiple time periods. When she presented the accomplished quilt to the 80-something year old couple, Judy learned the quilt had been a wedding gift some sixty years ago and had been worked on by three generations of family women. “Every quilt is sewn with loving hands and has a story,” marveled Judy, “This is a wonderful example of that.”

The style, the method, and the purpose of quilting has evolved over time, but the stories of healing, comfort, and love continue. “There are many different kinds of quilts,” noted Judy. “I learned about prayer quilts when I visited a local church.” Prayer quilts are not the pretty, decorative quilts; instead, they have undone yarn ties throughout. “I didn’t really appreciate the concept until I saw prayer quilts spread about the alter one Sunday. When I went forward to accept the Lord’s Communion, I watched as person after person walked to a quilt, said a prayer, and tied a knot. I was so deeply touched.” Once all knots are tied and filled with prayers, the quilt is gifted to someone in need. “My father was a Pentecostal minister,” explained Judy. “We did a similar blessing with doilies. Deacons would pray over a doily for medical, physical, and spiritual healing and then lay upon the sick. I grew up with this type of servitude so to learn about prayer quilts was just marvelous!”

​

Another special quilt is the Quilt of Valor, a national project to honor veterans. These quilts are made of high-quality fabric and must measure large enough to cover the veteran, as though our arms, our nation, is hugging them. “My husband, Mike, is a Vietnam veteran,” Judy proudly shared about her husband of 51 years, “so I looked into this acknowledgment for him and his best friend.” Judy describes her husband as a tough guy who gained his rough exterior from a long career working the iron mills in Gary, Indiana. “But when Mike was called upon stage and thanked for his service, I could see the tears he was holding back as he stood there with his Quilt of Valor wrapped around him.”

​

Judy has always sewn, making clothes and costumes when her two children were young, and she always had an interest in quilting. However, balancing a family while working leadership positions in the hospital Operating Room made quilting classes impossible. “When I retired in 2011, the very first thing I did was find a quilting class,” said Judy, “I remember how thrilled I was to be in a class, doing something that didn’t require a time frame of meetings. The clock was suddenly unimportant!”  Judy went on to describe her love of quilting, “I love the way you have to plan with analytical thinking, the precise measuring, and so many things that can go wrong but at the same time, it’s a marvelous puzzle trying to get everything to fit together, and when you finally do, it is such a beautiful accomplishment.” Judy acknowledges how her skills as a medical professional imitate that of quilting. Part of leadership is getting people where they need to be, having the right people in the right role, and considering every angle of the process. “Quilting is a familiar challenge. It’s a pleasant comfort to me,” she says.

As with most quilters, Judy gives away her quilts. “Every piece of fabric I hand-cut, every pattern I specifically choose with someone in mind.” Judy explained that there are many people who have helped along life’s way. Gifting them a quilt is a small means to honor the selfless sacrifices she knows they have made for others. Judy added, “There is always somebody making you humble, making you grateful for what you do, and providing inspiration.”

​

With so many incredible stories, Judy shared what she considers her most hilarious quilting accomplishment. “Every time I go into a quilt shop, I buy
fabric. Every time I come home, my husband razzes me about buying more fabric. One day I am in my quilting room, fighting with a pattern of colors,
and in comes my husband. Mike starts telling me to put this color here and
use that shape there!” Judy continued, “Well, I noticed that when I would use
his ideas, I got the compliments! Soon, he started inviting himself to the quilt
store with me! Fast forward? Mike has since made quilts!” He designs panel quilts, including the picture and color selections. Judy laughs and ends her
story with a question from Mike, “Judy, you want to go to Rossville and look at fabric?”

​

Now, grab a good book, a warm drink, and wrap yourself in a snuggly quilt.
Revel in the beauty of the quilt’s rich colors, differing textures, and comforting feel. Reflect on your life experiences, beautiful imperfections, and the marvelous stories just waiting to be shared. Let that well-loved quilt warm your body and soul.

​

Cheryl McElroy, Managing Editor, Senior Copy Editor and contributing writer for Hope.

Cheryl has a passion for storytelling and design, and when she is not spending time with

her daughter, she enjoys creative social media posting, home decorating, cheering on sporting events, or simply relaxing with a good cup of coffee.