Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
“Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home. Your house is on fire…”
Drawing inspiration from a children’s nursery rhyme, the Buffalo Cabin Quilt Guild began making “ladybug quilts” around 1988 for families who suffered the loss of their homes due to fire. The guild also made children’s quilts to donate to the Ronald McDonald House in Morgantown.
Flash forward 27 years, and remaining members of the group have recruited other quilters and crafters to make quilts again.
The quilters meet at the Green Bank Library, where fabric is waiting to become comforting quilts for children and families.
“We’re just a group of people getting together, like-minded people, to make quilts for people in need,” Green Bank resident Mary Ann Alonso said.
The group recently met to complete a quilt using a top donated by former Green Bank resident Pam Ford.
“She bought it at a yard sale and she wasn’t going to do anything with it,” Kathy Norrod, of Green Bank said. “When she heard that we were going to try to do this, she donated it. It’s going to be kept here at the library until someone needs it.”
Ford explained via email that she found the quilt top at an estate sale in Westfield, New York. Although the quilt doesn’t have ties to the county, it will offer comfort to a county resident one day.
Alonso said she hopes the group will gain momentum and return to making quilts like the former members of the guild.
The quilts are put together using the knot method. Along with being an easier and faster way to quilt, it doesn’t take much knowledge of quilting – only the ability to tie knots. Even a certain reporter was able to lend a hand.
The next quilting meeting will be Thursday, February 12, 1 to 3 p.m. at the Green Bank Library.