A Love of Quilting Becomes Quilts of Love | Arts-and-leisure

Last month, the SaddleBrooke Sunrise Rotary Club spotlighted one of its newer members—Dave Dettmann—who happens to be my incredible dad! The article mentioned the 30+ quilts he donated to the Club so they can be sold to support local charities. This month, we share the story of how these quilts came to be, hoping perhaps you will decide to make one (or more) of them part of your story too!

My folks retired to SaddleBrooke nearly 20 years ago. One of their house-hunting criteria was that it needed adequate space for my mom’s brand-new long arm quilting machine. Measuring roughly five feet wide, 14-feet long, and seven-feet tall, this was no easy task! But her gleaming “elephant in the room” soon found its home opposite the living room sofa, while the walls—much like a trellis—bloomed into a garden of beautifully-colored thread organized across rows upon rows of wall-hung racks. Likewise, the closets burst with a bounty of soft batting and a forest of fine fabrics, fat quarters, quilt kits and jelly rolls.

With hopes of starting a small business, my mom pieced patterns that spoke to her, while my dad—the engineer—focused on keeping the machine in tip-top shape. Though she had sewn her whole life, my mom began taking quilting classes at a local sewing store. However, she soon developed hip problems, such that my dad would often drive her to class and wait in the back to take her home. It didn’t take long for him to start learning some tips and tricks by osmosis, until soon they were working together on a variety of quilts, just for the fun of trying new techniques. Mom tended to favor putting blocks together, while dad became the primary operator of the long arm machine.

The quilts they amassed over the years speak to the variety of their interests. Mom enjoyed experimenting with machine embroidery, various block patterns and occasional appliques. Dad challenged himself to cut every piece exactly to size so the seams would line up perfectly… which they usually did!

Not long into their retirement, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. However, she never let that stop her. During her ensuing eight-year battle, she and my dad continued to create quilts together, resulting in the collection the club is now preparing to sell. While each quilt uniquely reflects the years of love my folks had for quilting and for each other, my dad realizes they do no one any good folded up in closets. Putting them into the hands of people who will love them, while simultaneously funding local charities that pour love back into the community, seemed to him the best way to turn their love of quilting into quilts of love.

The SaddleBrooke Sunrise Rotary Club hopes you agree and will join us for this sale in early 2025. More details will be announced in the near future. To learn about the Club’s many other initiatives, send an email to saddlebrookesunriserotary @gmail.com.