Local quilters stitch blankets, mend hearts
Daniel Martynowicz
Doris Nordyke creates a gray blanket using a hook and yarn. Once completed, the blanket will be a picture of a running horse in grey and black relief.
Daniel Martynowicz
Recently sewn blankets and quilts of varying size, texture and color await new owners.
Daniel Martynowicz
Daniel Martynowicz
Daniel Martynowicz
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CHARLO — When life gets you down — whether the reason is illness, natural disaster or just hard times — Charlo’s Sassy Scrappy Stitchers might be just the thing you need to get your spirits up.
The group began in 2000 as a way for friends to get together and make quilts and blankets at Charlo’s senior citizens center. Little more than a gathering of friends, the Stitchers would soon find a worthwhile cause to sew toward.
When Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast in 2005, several SSS ladies had the idea to begin making quilts for Katrina victims and their families. Women from all over the valley signed up to help, and with more fabric and sewing supply donations than they could use, SSS was able to donate 125 quilts to Katrina victims.
SSS member Pat Kerr said after donating the Katrina victim quilts, the group decided they could help their local community by continuing the cause.
“I guess we felt like we were doing a service for people who needed a little extra love,” Kerr said. “We want to cheer people up, and it gave us a purpose, too ... It gave us a way to help others.”
“We’re just trying to give people a nice, warm, fuzzy spot in their lives when they’re going through bad times,” SSS member Linda Esterby added.
Now, nearly a decade later, the ladies are still going strong.
The group has donated more than 600 blankets to causes including the Ronald McDonald House, Camp Make-A-Dream, the Poverello Center homeless shelter in Missoula, Safe Harbor, several camps for at-risk youth, unwed mothers organizations and to local individuals experiencing illness, financial woes or house fires.
With about 12 dedicated quilters, SSS members use donated materials and, when resources are scarce, dig into their own pockets for funding.
“I just think to myself, ‘If I was homeless or in that situation, wouldn’t it be wonderful to have someone give you a comfort out of the blue?’” Esterby said. “It’s very rewarding to me to think that I’m helping someone who is down on their luck or there has been an illness in the family and it’s been awful to cope with.
“To have someone come out of the blue give you something and say, ‘Here, I hope this helps you through your rough times,’ — it’s a wonderful project, and all the gals feel the same way.”
Esterby stressed that she didn’t want to be known as the group’s leader, as the Sassy Stitchers function as a cooperative with everyone pitching in and lending a helping hand.
Another group member, Pat Kerr, said the organization seeks to scout their energies and branch out to seldom-helped communities and organizations. Starting this year, every quilt will come with a tag reading, “Made for you, with love. — Sassy Scrappy Stitchers.”
A frugal organization, the group held a raffle to raise funding about five years ago, pulling down nearly $800. That funding has lasted the organization until now.
However, there are only so many ways to stretch such a relatively small amount. The group will raffle several quilts in Charlo over the Fourth of July weekend to come up with additional funds.
“In our hearts, we know that we’re helping someone that’s having a tough time in life... that alone is very rewarding,” Esterby said.
“We don’t do it for an, ‘Oh my god, thank you!’ reaction. We do it because we care.”
