Local guild donates quilts for kids in need
The Ozark Country Quilt Guild recently donated 15 quilts to the Barry County Sheriff’s Department to put in patrol vehicles. The quilts will be given to children in need in the event they have to be removed from their homes.
Pictured above, from left to right: Molly McKay, Ozark Country Quilt Guild Sheriff’s quilt committee chair; Vickie Clancy, Ozark Country Quilt Guild president; and Gary Davis, Barry County Sheriff.
August 1, 2018
Charlea Estes-Jones
There is a side of law enforcement that a lot of people don’t often think about. There are times that officers have to remove children from their homes for a myriad of reasons. Regardless of how sensitive and caring officers are, it’s a traumatic experience for the kids going through it.
A local quilting group teamed up with the Barry County Sheriff’s Department to try to give children a bit of comfort during those times. The Ozark Country Quilt Guild recently donated 15 quilts its members made to be placed in Barry County Sheriff’s Department cars for kids to take if they have to be placed into child protective services.
Vickie Clancy, president of the Ozark Country Quilt Guild, said the partnership came up through Barry County Sheriff’s Gary Davis’ Sunday school group. She said, “One of our members is in Sunday school with the sheriff and she asked if they had quilts in their cars for those kids.”
At that time, the Sheriff’s office did not carry quilts to wrap kids up with and send with them after.
Clancy continued, “So when we talked about it as a guild, we agreed to take it on as one of our donation projects.”
The member who suggested it, Molly McKay, is the committee chair for continuing to keep quilts in the cars for Barry County kids. When one quilt is given to a child, the group will provide another to replace it in the future.
Clancy said, “We told the Sheriff to keep in touch with her and if they’ve given one out, let us know and we’ll replace it. It takes time to make them.”
This is just one of many different groups the guild works with to give away donation quilts. Each year, they hand out between 50 and 55 quilts to groups throughout southwest Missouri and some in Arkansas. Members of the group span throughout Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma, according to Clancy.
She said, “Not every person participates in everything we do, but we do all try to make quilts for those in need.”
One of the tenets of membership in the guild is to contribute to the donation drives. Other groups who benefit from the donations include a pregnancy care organization in Aurora and Grandma’s House, a children’s advocacy center for kids who have experienced trauma and abuse.
They also make a quilt every other year to donate to the Barry County Museum. The quilt is raffled off to raise money for the continuing operation of the museum.
The Ozark Country Quilt Guild was founded in 1986 and currently has approximately 85 members. Of those, around 25 attend regularly. Clancy said, “Since some live in Kansas and Oklahoma, they only come for retreats.”
Taking care of the community and doing community service through quilting has always been an integral part of the group’s focus. Clancy said, “It’s a good time of fellowship and a good time to ask questions like, “what do I do with this’ or ‘how did I mess this up?’ It’s a time for learning from each other and sharing ideas.
“We are encouraging one another to make better quilts and help our community.”
The guild includes monthly business meetings and a workshop each month that includes a speaker, sometimes nationally recognized or other times a member. There is also an evening meeting once a month for people who want to participate but work during the day.
They also have a June tea and a May Airing every other year where members display their quilts. During the May Airing, the community is invited to attend and the members talk about their quilts and what techniques they used in their creation.
On even years, the group also puts on a large quilt show at Crowder College in Cassville.
For more information about the Ozark Country Quilt Guild, contact Vicki Clancy at (417) 342-1372. They also have a Facebook group.
Charlea Estes-Jones
There is a side of law enforcement that a lot of people don’t often think about. There are times that officers have to remove children from their homes for a myriad of reasons. Regardless of how sensitive and caring officers are, it’s a traumatic experience for the kids going through it.
A local quilting group teamed up with the Barry County Sheriff’s Department to try to give children a bit of comfort during those times. The Ozark Country Quilt Guild recently donated 15 quilts its members made to be placed in Barry County Sheriff’s Department cars for kids to take if they have to be placed into child protective services.
Vickie Clancy, president of the Ozark Country Quilt Guild, said the partnership came up through Barry County Sheriff’s Gary Davis’ Sunday school group. She said, “One of our members is in Sunday school with the sheriff and she asked if they had quilts in their cars for those kids.”
At that time, the Sheriff’s office did not carry quilts to wrap kids up with and send with them after.
Clancy continued, “So when we talked about it as a guild, we agreed to take it on as one of our donation projects.”
The member who suggested it, Molly McKay, is the committee chair for continuing to keep quilts in the cars for Barry County kids. When one quilt is given to a child, the group will provide another to replace it in the future.
Clancy said, “We told the Sheriff to keep in touch with her and if they’ve given one out, let us know and we’ll replace it. It takes time to make them.”
This is just one of many different groups the guild works with to give away donation quilts. Each year, they hand out between 50 and 55 quilts to groups throughout southwest Missouri and some in Arkansas. Members of the group span throughout Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma, according to Clancy.
She said, “Not every person participates in everything we do, but we do all try to make quilts for those in need.”
One of the tenets of membership in the guild is to contribute to the donation drives. Other groups who benefit from the donations include a pregnancy care organization in Aurora and Grandma’s House, a children’s advocacy center for kids who have experienced trauma and abuse.
They also make a quilt every other year to donate to the Barry County Museum. The quilt is raffled off to raise money for the continuing operation of the museum.
The Ozark Country Quilt Guild was founded in 1986 and currently has approximately 85 members. Of those, around 25 attend regularly. Clancy said, “Since some live in Kansas and Oklahoma, they only come for retreats.”
Taking care of the community and doing community service through quilting has always been an integral part of the group’s focus. Clancy said, “It’s a good time of fellowship and a good time to ask questions like, “what do I do with this’ or ‘how did I mess this up?’ It’s a time for learning from each other and sharing ideas.
“We are encouraging one another to make better quilts and help our community.”
The guild includes monthly business meetings and a workshop each month that includes a speaker, sometimes nationally recognized or other times a member. There is also an evening meeting once a month for people who want to participate but work during the day.
They also have a June tea and a May Airing every other year where members display their quilts. During the May Airing, the community is invited to attend and the members talk about their quilts and what techniques they used in their creation.
On even years, the group also puts on a large quilt show at Crowder College in Cassville.
For more information about the Ozark Country Quilt Guild, contact Vicki Clancy at (417) 342-1372. They also have a Facebook group.