The 2000th.....

 This quilt was constructed by my mom.
She made it from fabrics that reminded her of the housecoats that her mom wore around the house many years ago--soft, flowery fabrics.
My mom thought of her 'Aunt' Thelm as she carefully fit the pieces together.  ('Aunt' Thelm is actually married to my grandpa's cousin Herm which would make her my mom's 2nd cousin--made more sense to just call her 'aunt' because their families were so close).
Aunt Thelm has colon cancer and is 86 years old.  As you can imagine, there is not much that can be done.  She is receiving palliative care and waiting....
We knew we were approaching our 2000th quilt given and we decided that it HAD to go to Aunt Thelm.  She was my grandma Margaret's best friend.  So close in fact, that in 1947 my grandparents and Aunt Thelm and Uncle Herm almost had a double wedding!  But as the story goes, my grandparents were 'over-eager' and got married two weeks before Herm and Thelm. 

 If my grandma were still alive and well enough to, she would have cared for her friend Thelm in any way she could.  My mom was my grandma's hands--creating a quilt of comfort and HOPE.  It was very sweet to see my mom give it to her.

 It was also special to see my mom embraced by two people who bring back such good memories of her own parents.   She didn't want to get up from the couch :)  I don't blame her!

And so, a big milestone for Margaret's Hope Chest---2000 quilts.  2000 people just like Aunt Thelm--grasping for HOPE and comfort is an uncomfortable and scary world.  Thank you Jesus for your blessings on our work.