By Maridith Yahl
NKyTribune reporter
Quilts are wonderful for snuggling in on a cold winter night, but they can also be a beautiful work of art. The Federal Census Bureau gave the Kentucky Extension Homemakers Association (KEHA) a challenge for the upcoming 2020 census. To celebrate our diversities across the state and the unique qualities we all bring, the Census Bureau asked the KEHA to create a quilt representing the state of Kentucky by each of the 120 counties designing a six-and-a-half inch square that shares what speaks loudly of their county.
The project was proposed in March and initiated in May. KEHA had only four months before the quilts debuted at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah on September 16. Former State President, Marlene McComas recalls the meeting the proposal was discussed, “The homemakers were excited about it, to be a part of a big statewide project.”
Questions arose about who would collect the squares and put them all together. The determined McComas volunteered. “I spoke up and volunteered even though my term was going to be up on June 30 for the Presidency, I volunteered to be in charge of getting it all put together.”
This made sense to her, after all, she belongs to the quilters club in Grant County and Pendleton County Homemakers Association. Surely her fellow homemakers there would help out, and of course, they stepped up in a big way.
Homemakers Linda Evans and Linda Lawrence were instrumental in putting the quilt together. Evans came up with the idea to add white, one-inch-wide strips between each square and along the border. To make the quilt more elaborate she also added a blue square between each strip.
Homemakers were instructed to use lots of blues, greens, and yellow colors for continuity. Evans carefully placed each square in its perfect location to give the design flow, to let the eye wander around the quilt. Both Evans and Lawrence added the sashing, pieced the quilt top, and bound the quilt, said Rachael Price, Grant County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences.
About the final piece, “I truly look at this as a work of art, many works of art in one, because each one is, but the definite finished product is fantastic and I’m just so proud of it,” McComas beams. It truly is lovely and invigorates creativity.
Now that the quilt has been presented to the Census Bureau and displayed at the National Quilt Museum, the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives (KDLA) is creating a schedule for it to travel across the state. It won’t make it to every county but the work of art will be on display in local libraries.
The quilt is expected to be at the Pendleton County Public Library in Falmouth next August. The schedule is still being finalized but the KDLA website will post the schedule when ready.
After traveling, the census quilt will be housed and on display at the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives in Frankfort.
“In four short months, KEHA members across the state designed and created quilt squares representing each Kentucky county and Grant County KEHA members assembled the finished quilt. This unique project showcased the organization’s tenet of education, leaders, and service,” said current KEHA State Advisor, Kimberly Henken.
Traveling with the quilt will be a book that has a picture of each county’s square, the name of the county, the name of the person who designed it, and what it represents. “It will help viewers learn more about our state while showcasing the creativity of KEHA members. In addition, the quilt reminds viewers that every individual in every county counts – a key reminder for the 2020 Census. It is more than a quilt – it is an example of teamwork and achieving a common goal,” Henken shares.
The KEHA has a long history and worthwhile goals. With over 14,000 members, “Our mission statement says that our purpose is to improve the lives of families and communities across the state through leadership development, education, and volunteers,” McComas says with enthusiasm.
KEHA is an all-volunteer group supporting the community. The Homemakers support and in part, developed the Kentucky Proud Campaign. Overall, McComas says they want to build confidence and self-esteem. To learn more about KEHA follow the organization on Facebook here.
KEHA has eight counties in the Northern Kentucky Region: Boone, Campbell, Carroll, Gallatin, Grant, Kenton, Owen, and Pendleton. Each square uniquely illustrates its community in the remarkable quilt.
Boone County – The Boone County Extension Homemakers quilt square was made by Mary Neal, a long-time member, with a pen and ink drawing quilt panel donated by Linda Whittenburg and Linda Padgett. The panel features the Rabbit Hash General Store, an iconic symbol of Boone County.
Campbell County – Juanita Mitchell, Campbell County Homemaker, made the quilt square using a design called Churn Dash. “When they made butter using a wooden churn, the process involved dashing the churn up and down to make the butter. During this process of making butter, women would think about how they could make a quilt representing the process of making butter. Thus churn dash originated.”
Gallatin County – The Gallatin County quilt square was made by ‘Fun Time Quilter’ member Sue Keller and features a race car representing the Kentucky Speedway.
Grant County – The Grant County quilt square was created by Grant County Extension Homemaker member Maxine Brown. The Grant County Homemaker members decided to create an Ark on their quilt square as the Ark Encounter has quickly become a Landmark in Grant County that is easily recognized across the state.
Kenton County – Made by Judy Allesandro from the ‘Contemporaries Homemaker Club.’
The block represents the many great fireworks displays held on the River (Labor Day, Reds Games, etc.) and visible to Kenton County residents.
Owen County – Denise Perkins hand-stitched the quilt square. It is the logo for their Bicentennial Celebration in 2019.
Pendleton County – Joyce Flaugher designed the square, using the new tourism council logo created for our county.
The Census Quilt
Marlene McComas and Linda Evans show off the work of art. (Photo courtesy of Marlene McComas)
