Baby Quilt Project

Sassy Quilters formed in January 2002 to work on our community’s sesquicentennial quilt.  That same month one of the members read in a magazine of a project occurring in Ohio.  She brought the idea to the newly formed group to see if they were interested in doing the same in our area.  The idea was willingly agreed upon as a fun civic contribution for our group to do.

National Quilt Day is the third Saturday of March every year.  Beginning in March of 2002, Sassy Quilters began providing a baby quilt to each baby born in the two hospitals in Rochester, MN on that day.  With as few as 5 births on a given Saturday to as many as 12, approximately 75 quilts have been given to newborns to date.

A call is made early Sunday morning to see how many quilts are needed for the previous day’s births.  The quilts are delivered to the hospital staff on Sunday morning to distribute to the families.  The hospital staff in turns runs them through x-ray to insure no pins or needles have mistakenly been left in. 

A simple note is attached to each quilt with an explanation of National Quilt Day along with the name of the quilter that made the gift for their newborn.  Many times a quilter receives a heartwarming thank you note from the family.  The following note is one received this October from a quilt given in March 2010. 

“It’s been a while, but we haven’t forgotten the kind and wonderful gift you made for our sweet baby girl.  Thank you so much for the beautiful quilt.  Quilts are big in my family—my grandmother made me one as a baby and others as a child.  Whenever I see a quilt, I think of her—a fond memory of a fabulous lady.  My daughter will never meet my grandmother, but the quilt she has from you will inspire and remind me to tell her stories and keep the memory of my grandmother alive.  Your gift means more to us than you will ever know.  Thank you so much.  God Bless You!”

We realize that many that we give a quilt to do not respond back with a thank you note, but when we receive notes like this, we all understand why we do what we do.  It is something so small on our part, yet so loved by the families.  What great joy we have in providing a simple gift from our heart for a new young family!