Scott Swanson
Of The New Era
Norma Reeser isn’t the only quilt-maker in Sweet Home, but she’s one of the most prolific.
Reeser, who will turn 87 in December, makes quilts, for children in hospitals and those who are placed in foster homes, as part of the Project Linus.
Project Linus, named after the blanket-loving Peanuts character, provides security-blanket quilts for children in stress situations, in hospitals, police and fire departments, victims of house fires and children separated form their parents, according to Lerena Ruby, owner of the Seamingly Creative sewing shop in Sweet Home, who recruited Reeser to make quilts for the project.
In the past five years or so, since she got involved in the project, Reeser has made more than 400 quilts.
“The time goes so fast, I can’t keep up with it,” she said.
She does some quilting when she gets together with the Jolly Stitchers sewing club at the Senior Center on Fridays. But mostly she does them by herself, with help from her young neighbors, Ashton, Dillon and Kyndall Stutzman. The three are home-schooled and come by at least once a week to put in some time on the quilts.
“I have helpers,” Reeser said. “Last Friday we tied out four crib-sized quilts.”
The Stutzman youngsters have been beneficiaries of Reeser’s quilts themselves. She said Dillon, now 8, wore out a quilt she made for him, then appropriated his brother’s and wore that one out too.
The Stutzmans started helping out two years ago. Usually, they help Reeser tie off quilts that she’s prepared. They’ve also sewn blocks for one quilt and recently they colored pictures that are being assembled into quilts.
“I just like doing it with Norma,” said Ashton, 10.
Reeser chuckled.
“He’s 10,” she said, dryly. “One of these days he’s going to say, ‘Please, I’m not going to do that.'”
“I’ll never do that,” Ashton replied, earnestly.
Reeser said their quilts have been distributed as far away as Walla Walla, Wash. and Florence and they’ve heard from some recipients. Project Linus quilts are being distributed to children with cancer through the Candlelighters for Children organization in Portland and Eugene. Linn County Sheriff’s deputies provide blankets to children whom they come into contact with at traffic accident scenes and in abuse situations. Blankets are also distributed to children treated at the ABC Crisis Center in Albany, according to the organization.
Worldwide, Project Linus has distributed more than 90,000 security blankets through its 270 chapters in the United States, Canada and Australia. The project was founded 11 years ago by a Colorado woman who saw a photograph of a young cancer patient holding a security blanket.
The Stutzmans helped Reeser make one quilt for a homeless man who was living under the Pleasant Valley Bridge a couple of years ago, whom she heard about from a relative.
“I remember how tickled he was,” she said of the man, who never was told where the quilt came from. “We put two bats (stuffing) in that quilt.”
“It was really thick,” said Ashton. “It was about an inch thick.”
Kyndall, 6, has been threading needles for the projects since she was 5.
Dillon said he likes coming over because they get rewards for helping out.
“Whenever we come over we get ice cream,” he said.
Reeser clearly gets a kick out of having the children around.
“It’s fun working with the little guys,” she said. “Doing this teaches them.”
Though she has to buy the batting, she gets most of the other material she uses free through donations to the Senior Center and trips to Ruby’s shop.
A lot of material comes into the Senior Center as donations from people’s estates,” she said.
Lately, Reeser has started using leftovers to make smaller quilts, for premature babies.
She was one herself, she said, weighing 3 1/2 pounds when she was born in Woodburn, on a day when there was 3 1/2 feet of snow on the ground.
“They put me in a shoebox behind the wood stove to keep me warm,” she said.
Ruby said other quilters contribute to Project Linus, though Reeser is the largest producer. She said the project collects quilts all year, but local participants put on a quilt show and hold a Tie On Party in February, National Linus Month, when production reaches a peak.
She said the last two shows have been on the sidewalk in front of what is now Steelhead Strength and Fitness, on the corner of Main and 13th Avenue.
For the show, one “nice” quilt is made and raffled off to raise money for Project Linus.
“This is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization,” Ruby said. “We like to do something for them.”
She said the project could always use more help.
“We’re always looking for more quilters to help out,” she said.
It’s been a labor of love for Reeser.
“I love making these little quilts,” she said. “So many people have given me material to make them. I just gave my time to do it.”