Quilting guild gives back to Pahrump community

The gift of warmth was bestowed upon more than 100 local senior citizens, courtesy of Pahrump’s Shadow Mountain Quilters Guild.

Last month, just in time for the holiday season, members of the group provided handmade quilts, scarves, headwear and afghans to the Pahrump Senior Center Meals on Wheels program.

Carol Carpenter, chairman of the quilters’ Charity Committee, noted the gift was first of its kind from the group, who regularly meet at the Bob Ruud Community Center each Thursday, barring holidays.

Carpenter noted that there are more than 100 members associated with the quilting group.

“My request back in May, was that we give a quilt or afghan to every senior who receives Meals on Wheels through the Pahrump Senior Center,” she said. “We have items for Meals on Wheels recipients, No To Abuse clients and the NyE Communities Coalition. We have hats, but we don’t have enough scarves to give every Meals on Wheels recipient. The leftovers - scarves, quilts and afghans will go to the coalition. We will deliver these items to the senior center.”

Pahrump Senior Center Site Manager Anne Blankenship-Harris was overwhelmed by the altruistic gesture.

“These kind ladies invested a lot of time and hard work to bring comfort to the seniors in our Meals on Wheels program,” she said. “Their generosity will certainly not be forgotten, and we can’t thank them enough for all of their efforts to make our more than 120 homebound seniors more comfortable during the cold winter months.”

Carpenter, meanwhile, said members of the quilters’ guild perform a number of different skills in the world of needlework.

“We have people sewing, crocheting, knitting and some even do needlepoint,” she said. “This is very time-consuming work. I just decided that it was a good thing to do this year. I’m not certain about next year because I am retiring. We encourage everyone to come out and see all of the beautiful quilts and handiwork that the members of our community create. We also have a quilt show, which will be at Nevada Treasure RV Park coming up in April. It’s an annual event.”

Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com, on Twitter: @pvtimes