I have been asked to write a 'Cover page' for this little Blog .. in order for readers to understand a little more about us ... so I will attempt to do so, with a little 'cutting and pasting' of words from one of our founders, Rachel Breukel' .... and the previous CEO of Christian Outreach Ministry, Glen Cox. I will also attach Links to the organisations that we are helping to support with our fabric 'Hugs' ...and provide the dimensions of the quilts we create so that those willing to donate quilt tops can readily see how they may help us. So without further ado ... here goes ... reprinted from December 2008 ... and in Rachels words....
Who the Quilters for Orphans are .....
'Each month, fifteen to twenty women gather together in someones' house to continue their efforts in providing Indian orphans with quilts. After the tsunami in Indonesia their passion was awakened to help others. Being told that the orphans in India simply slept on the floor, they decided they would do something about it. Making that decision was the easy bit. Fulfilling it is a task of mammoth proportions! The story goes on .....
"There are 25 ladies on our books, and we meet on a Saturday each month. Making quilts for orphans sounded simple at the time. Then we realised how many kids there were. We are making over 2000 quilts. For anyone who has made one quilt .... .well you understand the gravity of this challenge. However, we have also found out that a quilt is a sign of status in India, which encourages us even more in what we are doing.
The next container Christian Outreach Ministry (COM) sends to India carries some 100+ completed quilts. That's another 2 orphan homes worth. Something extra special about this is that the kids from Careforce Church have been creating cards for each of the quilts. On the back of each quilt is a pocket. In each pocket is a handmade card with a Bible verse, picture and the name and age of the child who made it. Then it is laminated so that it can last forever. How cool is that? Every single quilt will have a card in it.
Personally I feel like a 'real grown up'. Being involved in something tangible and having a direct input into a childs life and their future is something difficult to put into words. My vision for the future is to see a quilt that was made by us in the arms of the son or daughter of the child who received that quilt so many years ago. I would love to see a family photo of a child of God whose life was impacted by a group of women in a far away land, all with one mission in their hearts: to send a God inspired, long distance, never ending present of a HUG. We like to think that our quilts are like a mothers arms, willing to go around them for any reason and at any time.
In October of last year I was contacted by the magazine 'Patchwork and Stitching', to do a story on us. It is one of the largest magazines of its kind in Australia. In that article I mentioned that if anyone had a quilting machine lying around that we'd be happy to get it out of their way. Within 5 days of the magazine hitting the newsstands I was contacted by a lady with a machine. She text messaged me saying 'read your emails'. I did. She wrote that she had a machine in her garage if I was interested. I rang her to say it was price dependant and that we had no funds to work with. She very sweetly said "I would really rather donate it". That did me in. The tears flowed and flowed. Within 3 days we had picked it up. God had answered a prayer we had dared to pray! A quilting machine! Not just the machine, a frame (3.6 metres long) and a table. (Editors note: these machines are worth LOTS of money!)
Our group has great fellowship. Women have responded to the magazine and joined in our workdays. They are people from different walks of life and religions. There are even ladies interstate sewing and posting their work to us.
At this point we have no financial backing. Everything is donated, whether that be by the ladies themselves or wherever we might beg from. I quite enjoy asking for stuff (it really pays to be thick skinned. The worst reaction I can get is 'No'). I've found that most people, if given the chance, really like to be generous. Never say "they'll never give us anything". How do you know? God does indeed work in mysterious ways AND he doesn't always use the people we expect to do HIS work. One of the most charitable givers is quite a colourful character. (I could be quite offended really, but I like him. Who are we to judge?). Fabric, cotton and time is donated. Whenever we run out, I start begging again. We are always running out of batting (the inside layer). It is very expensive to buy. Some has been donated by Birch Haberdashery and Mac' Crafts. The ladies also put their own money toward it. Our greatest need at this point is a studio. At the moment everything is cramped in and outside of Mum and Dads house. Basically we are waiting/praying for God to tell someone to donate us a shed. It needs to be at least 9mx12m. Pride is not an issue. We'll accept donations from anyone. We are even happy to advertise the generous giver. We have the land and most of the interior bits and pieces, but we need a concrete slab and work benches. We also need room for storage (thus the large size).
We are hoping to have quite a few things for sale during Missions Month at Careforce Church in October. We will have displays around the church. There will be quilts for sale with all proceeds going toward batting. The need is great. The challenge will be ongoing. Unfortunately there will always be orphaned children. Fortunately we will continue as long as needed. If you would like to help us in any way, please don't hesitate to contact us."
Rachel Breukel
So there you are folks ... in Rachels own words the QFO story. Obviously the October 2008 Missions Month has been and gone and our shed is so very nearly a completed reality.... but the rest of Rachels story is still as relevant as when she spoke to the church magazine. Just thought it would be nice to share her obvious passion with the rest of our Blog readers.
Now to share from our previous COM CEO, Glen Cox .... from May 2010
The Why:
No matter what path we follow in life....it is our passion/calling (the why) that ultimately drives us. To travel to a developing country like India & walk through the streets/slums in the big cities & the village roads of rural communities you can't help but observe the obvious need that exists among the children of this great land.
To understand that literally millions (indeed 100's of millions) of Indians never get a chance to be educated or have any hope of breaking out of the cycle of poverty is something that strikes you as soon as you spend a few hours in these communities. You ask yourself.....'What can I do?' or 'What difference could I ever make?'.....The feeling can be overwhelming if not daunting!
It touches your heart & indeed often challenges your whole world view on the important role we have as coming from a society that takes all we have for granted. Often 'messes up your hair' big time as we seek to understand what our purpose in life ultimately distills down to.
The realisation that we can make a difference...even if it is to a single child in India can be profound & life changing for us & the child concerned.
This is what COM has done both through its support for on average 1250 children every year for the past 25+years. The running of the opportunity shop(s) in Mt Evelyn has effectively supplied the capital required for each of the 25 homes over the past 25 years & continues to allow development & growth of this vital part part of God's plan to see us 'rescue' the widows & particularly the fatherless in this context.
In addition to this to see the outworking of peoples concern, care & love for these children by seeing a project develop that is going to provide each of these children with a handmade quilt is yet another example of how we have been able to engage in a meaningful way with these amazing children.
Making a difference in the life of child & giving them an opportunity that they may never have had if COM had not turned up is the real heart beat of both the shops established in Mt Evelyn & the Quilting group.....it is the why!
Glen Cox
So there we are ... who and what we are ... now to add a tiny bit more ... the details of our quilt sizes for those willing to get out their sewing machines after reading this ... and our contact details and related Links.
Quilt top sizes for India and China... updated and current as of November 2010 .. for India we require tops sized 65" x 45" ... it seems that the children in India now require extra length, as these quilts will be their for life and they don't stay 'munchkin size' forever ... and we are also using new double width wadding for our quilt 'insides'.
For the children in the New Hope Foundation in China the requirements are a little different. The quilts must be in matching sets of three. The reasons for this are that the nannys in this fosterhome are each responsible for 3 babies. These babies are in rooms of a specific colour, and for ease of identification the beds/quilts are colour co-ordinated with the rooms. In other words, green cribs and quilts in the green room, pink in the pink room etc. Now the quilts can be pieced together in different styles, but the fabrics MUST be the same for each set of three quilts. The dimensions for these quilts are 30" x 45". All basic colours are needed. The website for the New Hope Foundation is:
Now our QFO Contact details are as follow:
Gaynor Peterson .... (03)9756 7950
Susan Hamilton .... (03)9737 1825 ... shamilton@aanet.com.au
.... and finally ....Links to those that we support and that support us through publicity Links in their own Blogs:
www.chinakidz.org .... for news about the Butterfly Palliative Care hospice in China
www.freetobekids.org/- .... the rescue organisation that frees children from slavery and exploitation
www.com.org.au .... our very own Christian Outreach Ministry in Mount Evelyn
http://kayleenwest.com.au .... for Art with a positive spirit
http://mellyandme.typepad.com .... creative clothing etc for children
www.hopefosterhome.com ... the latest group of babies we are creating crib quilts for ...
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*********** IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR ******************
Now to see the latest Blog entry from now on as well as those leading up to the latest, simply go to the top right hand side of this page and click on the 'Archive' tab for the relevant month ... simple as can be ... blessings to you, and thank you for reading ..
Susan
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