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Tuesday evening, Sierra Club West Virginia will debut its finished “Quilting for Community” project in Morgantown – designed, cut and sewn by dozens of community members who may or may not have had any sewing skills when they began.
With any luck, that project will begin a statewide tour that leads to similar projects across West Virginia.
The “Quilting for Community” project began in the dead of winter – when most people are hunkered down after the holidays. Lisa Di Bartolomeo, the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign organizer, was looking for a project that might bring people together like so many Appalachian traditions used to do.
“People came together at quilting circles, often after the time of the harvest, so once the days were shorter and the nights were longer and the weather got colder,” Di Bartolomeo said. “This was a way for people to come together to build community, to talk about local issues, gossip, match, make, make plans, just tell stories, tell jokes, get to know one another, and build community.”
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lisa Di Bartolomeo
Her focus is on the future of coal in West Virginia. But with few easy solutions, gathering people to talk about environmental issues can often seem overwhelming or depressing. So Di Bartolomeo followed the concept of a Ted Talk about finding joy in fighting climate change. A friend donated garbage bags full of scraps, and the first meeting was held in January. She was floored when 56 people – men, women and teens, a variety of ages and backgrounds – showed up that very first night.
“We had people who’ve been quilting for decades. We had people who’ve never sewn before, but were interested in learning. We even had a middle schooler come with her mom, who would say, ‘I remember my grandmother or my great grandmother doing these quilts, and I always wanted to learn,’” Di Bartolomeo said.
Not everyone shared the same ideas about the future of coal – and getting those conversations going, she said, was part of the point. The result is the community quilt that will debut Tuesday night and, organizers hope, make its way to venues across the state.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Lisa Di Bartolomeo
“Part of what I’m hoping media attention can help us do is for people to hear this story and say, ‘oh, I would love to display the quilt at my gallery in Parsons or my library in Huntington,’ or wherever. Whatever space folks are interested in hosting it,” Di Bartolomeo said. “I would love for people to reach out and we can figure out a set of dates that make sense for everybody.”
She also hopes to hear from people in other communities across the state who might want to do their own community quilt – or other artistic endeavor.
The Quilting for Community debut party will take place Tuesday, June 2 at The Co-Op, located at 131 Pleasant Street in Morgantown from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Click here to RSVP and reach out to lisa.dibartolomeo@sierraclub.org with any questions.