Our History

The logo of the guild was designed by Rose Perry. After the first quilt show in 1990, the guild decided to have a logo pin made. Tracey Mackenzie found a custom pin company called “The Pin Place”. Guild members selected white for the background and blue and green for the letters. The first order of 200 pins sold for $3.00 each as a fund raiser for the guild.

The pin order of 1994 had an Amish color theme of black, pink and turquoise to match the guild’s Amish friendship sampler raffle quilt.

The pin order of 1996 included two sets of pins – off-white, red and green known as the Christmas pin, and gray, dark turquoise and cranberry to match the gray and cranberry sampler raffle quilt.

The pin order made after the 2008 quilt show had a lilac background with yellow and orange letters.

A badge was designed from our logo. Guild members quilted their badge to be worn as a name tag. The original 4 colors for the badge were muslin for the background so that your name can be printed in the name space and 2 solid colors (no prints) of the quilter’s choice for the H&R lettering and crossover for the fish. Solids were selected solids so that the design is clear. The borders of the badge are also the quilters’ choice, but it had to be a blue print to represent the waters of the Herring Run. Early badges had the same look, but each quilter chose her own solid colors and blue print for a unique looking badge.

The first quilt show was held on September 22, 1990 for one day at the Congregation Church Parish Hall in Hanover. On display were 47 quilts, 18 challenge quilts. Genevieve Grundy of Duxbury was the featured quilter with 17 quilts. Joyce Archer was the first viewer’s choice winner. There were two quilt vendors, Quilter’s Delight and Tumbleweeds. At the time, membership was 41 quilters. The raffle quilt was “Jewel Box”.

Quilt shows are held every other year on the even year, showcasing the many quilting talents of our guild members. Growing each year, recent shows includes over 200 quilts, challenge quilts, vendors, silent auction, bed turning and more.

In 1989, the "Block of the Month" was called a “Round Robin”. To participate you purchased the common fabric and block pattern for 75 cents, followed the rules of the pattern, and turned in the finished block at the next meeting. The Round Robin was a small fund raiser for the guild. The Fall-Winter Newsletter 1990 reports the first block was for a pine tree block, but no pattern has been found.

In 1996, the “Round Robin” became the “Block of the Month”. A pattern was provided, and guild members made a block to win the completed blocks in a raffle.

In 1989, the guild met at the Lydia Drake Library in Pembroke. One of the first projects this guild worked on was a raffle quilt for the library. The guild made a shoo fly with 9 patch blocks, a lap size quilt that was tied. The quilt was donated to the library and they raffled it off to raise money to buy new books.

Below is a list of other raffle quilts:

Hand quilted by members:

1990 - Jewel Box

1992 – Tennessee Waltz

1994 – Amish Friendship Sampler

1996 – Gray and Cranberry Applique Sampler

1998 – Mountain Paint Brush

2000 – Millennium Star

Machine Quilted on a Longarm

2004 – Morning Star

2006 – Scrappy Lighthouses

2008 – Poppies

2010 – New York Blues (New York Beauty)

In 1992, three years after the guild was formed, the tradition of making Comfort Quilts began with 50 of the 80 members getting together to make quilts.

As reported by the Patriot Ledger on February 3, 1992:

"Sewing machines whirred almost non-stop for three hours in the Congregational Church Hall. Talking was at a minimum. And club members who sometimes spend months of loving care on favorite patterns made 10 quilts in assembly line fashion. "The results of all this speed-stitching won't be displayed at church raffles or sent to grandchildren. They will grace the beds of homeless shelters and crisis centers." Read full article

Read more about recipients of the quilts over 30+ years plus ideas for more at Comfort Quilts.