Donor Quilt

Rebecca Matli, Community Libraries West


After more than a decade in the making, the Donor Wall at the Caruthers Branch Library can finally showcase local donors. The project began with the FOCAL (Friends of the Caruthers Area Library ) support group discussing possibilites for a new library and organizing and garnering funds more than 10 years ago.

As part of the building project, a donor wall was brought to the Support group's table in January of 1998. How did the group want to showcase donors - through tiles, bricks, etc.? Ideas were explored and shared and vendors were reviewed for costs, but no definitive decision was made on how to proceed with the wall after the branch dedication on April 24, 2003.

One of the determining factors on a quilt donor wall was a change order for the branch lighting fixtures. The intent of the architect’s building design had included high ceilings to create depth. And in my thinking, to showcase quilts. Unfortunately, a change order came into play during construction, resulting in more practical lighting fixtures. The idea of quilts hanging from the ceiling had to be scrapped. Then, the idea of a donor quilt came to fruition within the support group. The group took their “Bunches of Grapes” donation theme and translated that into a quilt which was custom designed for the donor wall in the lobby area.

Support group member Mary Ann Adams spent about a year planning and looking for an appropriate design and material, which was unanimously approved by the group and the library. Mary Ann then turned the quilt over to Velma Barber, another longtime support group member, who sewed the pieces together, which took about 4-5 months. The 104 donor names were printed with an inkjet printer onto the quilt showcasing all the support the branch received from donors. The quilt was finally completed and shown in last fall’s Caruthers Fair, winning a special recognition ribbon in the Home Arts Display division.

Although it was a very long process, the donor wall is beautiful and preserved under plexiglass. Our Maintenance staff worked with Mary Ann, Velma and other staff to ensure that the quilt was properly hung in the right light. What a wonderful tribute to Caruthers!