CommonCall: Wrapped in a labor of love, enveloped in beauty

Corrina Ahern and Joy Teague collaborate on a quilt at First Baptist Church in Crowley.(Photo: Ken Camp)

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Participants in a women’s ministry at First Baptist Church in Crowley believe every newborn baby deserves a warm welcome into the world, and every critically ill patient or infirm elderly person should face dark days enveloped by beauty.

quilts vickery pastor425Pastor Joel McCoy appreciates the craftsmanship and commitment of quilter Sue Vickery. (Photos: Ken Camp)For more than 15 years, the church’s quilt ministry has provided handmade, individually designed blessings for people in their congregation and community.

The quilt ministry meets twice a week—on Tuesday evening to accommodate the schedule of women who work outside home and Thursday afternoon for those who prefer a daytime gathering.

The women make baby quilts the church presents to every family in their church with a newborn, and they create lap quilts the church gives to nursing home residents, chemotherapy patients and other people with serious illnesses. 

The group also works on full-sized quilts, and they sell many of them at an annual quilt show that draws more than 250 shoppers, browsers and admirers. After covering the expenses of the self-supporting ministry, the group donates additional proceeds to the First Baptist Church building fund and to Crowley House of Hope—a thrift shop, food pantry, medical clinic and benevolence ministry serving their community.

quilts henderson425Sally Henderson focuses on a stitch as she participates in First Baptist Church of Crowley’s quilting ministry.They also help some local residents preserve precious heirlooms, quilting tops pieced by mothers and grandmothers that sometimes have been stored in cedar chests for decades, awaiting completion.

“One of the most significant ministries of this church is these ladies and what they do,” Pastor Joel McCoy said.

Sally Henderson remembered the first project the group tackled in 1999.

“Our stitches were really interesting then,” she said with a grin. “We were all learning together.”


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Some of the women who were eager learners more than 15 years ago serve as instructors and mentors now.

“We recruited some older women to teach us how to quilt because we wanted to learn,” Dela Felber recalled. “Now we are the older ones teaching others.”

quilts hanging300The quilting ministry supplies baby quilts, which the church presents to every family in their church with a newborn, and lap quilts the church gives to nursing home residents, chemotherapy patients and other people with serious illnesses.Until last fall, the quilt ministry met in a room in the church’s youth building. When a fire destroyed that structure in November, members initially feared their ministry went up in flames along with it.

“I couldn’t believe it when the firemen started bringing out fabric and quilts that were ready for us to give away,” Ann Rhoades said. 

“It was God’s miracle. The door to our room was charred but didn’t burn all the way through.”

Many of the supplies, including quilting frames and fabric, survived the fire, and the ministry replaced damaged equipment. The church provided a new home for the quilt ministry in its Sunday school building.

“This is such an important ministry,” McCoy said. “These ladies have done a super job. They are a real blessing to our church and our community.”

Read more about “beauty” in the April issue of CommonCall magazine. CommonCall features inspiring stories about Christians living out their faith and informative articles about ministries that actually work. An annual subscription is only $24 and comes with two complementary subscriptions to the Baptist Standard. To subscribe to CommonCall, click here.


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