Quilts For Kids

February 2003

Quilts For Kids came into being because I found out about four little sisters being sexually abused by their father. It was from the mother that I learned of this outrage…family services had helped her to get him out of the house, but since she was a drug addict and her husband was her supplier, she had let him come back. I was haunted by those little girls, but was assured by county services when I called them that all was being done “within the system” that could be done. While walking on the beach with turmoil in my heart and mind, I asked for peace about this knowledge or to be shown something I could do about it. The inspiration came: You can make those little girls quilts. Something to do!! The girls never knew why they each got a cute quilt of their own from me, but the idea for Quilts For Kids was born. Through serendipitous means, I learned about CARES NW. While being given the tour there, I knew I’d found a home for Quilts For Kids.

I work in a very busy quilt shop and the owner provides space for my Quilts For Kids display. With many, many quilters passing the Quilts for Kids display every week, I soon had quilts coming in regularly. And I found out something very interesting: QFK is about more than the quilts the kids get—it’s also about the people who make them. Some people make these quilts as a way to heal themselves…from abuse, from loss and sorrow. And many are made simply because we’re grateful not to have those things in our lives, and because we want to do a bit to heal a hurting world. There’s an 89 year old woman who makes many quilts for us — a handsome, athletic teen-age boy who’s contributed quilts — a woman who was abused herself as a child and finds making quilts for others helps to heal her wounds — staff members at the shop where I work make many quilts because they care about kids. And Quilts for Kids is also about the staff at CARES NW: I’ve heard stories from them about how much it means to them to have something beautiful to give a child after a heartbreaking interview and exam. For me, the exceptional support I’ve received from the staff at CARES NW has lifted me up when I needed it. And, of course, the stories of the kids themselves—many going directly into foster homes without anything else of their own except the quilt they got at CARES NW. QFK started at The Pine Needle in February 1999…as of November, 2007, I’ve taken over 7000 quilts to CARES NW. These are beautiful quilts!! They help to heal us all.

Thanks to the contributions of my accountant and attorney, Comforting Kids Network is a non-profit organization dba Quilts For Kids. Historically, quilting and being part of a quilting community has brought support, healing, and empowerment to women. I want to pass along this legacy, as well as to raise community awareness about child abuse. CARES NW sees about 150 kids a month…QFK provides quilts for a fraction of those children….But in eight years, over 7000 kids have received the comfort of a beautiful, handmade quilt. The magic of quilts is such that every child who gets to select his or her own quilt knows on some level that there are people out there who care about what happens to them.

Kathy Wheatley

Lake Oswego, Oregon