The Cache Bay chapter of Victoria Quilts received a donation, October 20th, from the Verner Golf Club. Carole Cousineau, golf club manager, was pleased to hand a cheque to Suzanne Davidson-Noël, chair of the quilters’ group. “All summer long we have our weekly activities, Men’s, Ladies, Seniors and Mixed night,” says Cousineau. “The last [night] of the season I always hold a 50/50 [draw] for Victoria Quilts. The amount we picked up this year was $580. We’ve done it for 4 or 5 years. COVID stopped us from doing it two years in a row, now we’re back at it.”
Victoria’s Quilts Canada (VQC) volunteers create handmade quilts for people living with cancer, in the hope of providing them physical and spiritual comfort. “How I found out about it, my sister got cancer in London. She received one of those in the mail. I know how much she hangs on to it. She has been cancer-free for 9 years; she still has that blanket on her couch beside her. When she has those moments, there’s a little prayer inside, she reads that prayer and I know how much it touches her and gave her hope all through it,” says Cousineau. “So, when I found out about Victoria Quilts, I did a little research and found there was a Victoria Quilts here (in Cache Bay)… A lot of members of the golf course received these quilts.”
Victoria’s Quilts needs help to absorb the ever-increasing cost of the work they do. The quilts they produce are provided at no cost, but it does cost them. Charitable donations have been lower during COVID, and the cost of materials has increased. Suzanne Davidson-Noël gratefully acknowledged the gift from Verner, exuberantly thanking Cousineau and adding that her group is very cost conscious. “If we bought the fabric at full price, it would cost us over $150 to do a quilt – but we can do it for $100. We buy batting, a bit of flannelette… We like sewing. When we get a thank you, we read those letters out loud. It gives us the purpose to go on.” The local Victoria Quilts Canada chapter works out of the United Club 50 in Cache Bay.
