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P E A C E Q U I L T S

Building Better Lives Through Art

Earthquake Relief

UPDATE

What we’ve been able to find out.

PeaceQuilts has been able to speak directly with some of our key people in Haiti. Our co-op manager, Nadège Florian, has related a lot of information, and has been invaluable in facilitating communication and emergency aid. On the back of a motorbike (as there was too much rubble and destruction to travel by any other means) she visited with many of our quilters, and has given us a sense of their situations. Several have lost their homes, but on the whole, they are managing. There has been some loss of life, especially at the training school in Port-au-Prince where we had plans to start a quilting program later this year. Sadly 8 young women were killed, along with one of the sisters and a novice.

How we’ve put your donations to immediate use.

Three days after the quake hit, PeaceQuilts was able to get emergency funds to our partners in Lilavois. Your gifts were used to purchase clean water and food for members of our quilting cooperatives, their families, the staff of two of the training schools we work with, as well as Haitians living near the schools. Prior to the earthquake, Haiti’s infrastructure for distributing food and providing water was limited. The earthquake and aftershocks have destroyed that vital infrastructure. International aid is arriving in Port-au-Prince, but the devastation and lack of security have made it difficult to distribute aid. It is extremely difficult to predict when international aid will reach villages outside of Port-au-Prince, like Lilavois. Your support is being used to provide immediate relief to Haitians who cannot get assistance from the international aid stations. Your support was and remains critical to their survival, providing for their basic needs.

More ways you can help.

We have just updated our online shop with more beautiful quilts made by the women of the PeaceQuilts cooperatives in Haiti. (They start at just $12 for small items.) Each one is unique. You might also be interested in hosting a Win/Win Raffle with our free quilt kit available for any quilt priced at $150 or higher. You can donate the proceeds back to PeaceQuilts or put it toward another worthy project of your choice. As always, these funds go toward the salaries and commissions so that co-op members can earn a living, and to aid the project in relieving poverty in Haiti. Remember, PeaceQuilts is made up of 100% volunteers here in the U.S. We all pay our own expenses to Haiti so that every penny possible can go toward our efforts to help poor Haitians help themselves.

We thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for your compassion, encouragement, and generosity.

1/14/10

Dear PeaceQuilts friends and supporters,

Many of you are aware that we were on our way to Haiti on January 12th when the devastating earthquake hit. Just as we were about to board out flight, it was cancelled, so we wanted to let you know that we are safe here in the United States, thankfully!

Since then we have been continuousy trying to reach our quilters, friends and colleagues in Haiti by phone, email and text message, but have so far been unable to make any contact. Obviously things are very chaotic, and we will try to share news with you as we receive it.

We were especially excited about our plans for this trip as we were going to visit and assist in the progress of some of our newly formed cooperatives, now with nearly 50 members. Chief among these is a new cooperative in Cite Soleil, a wretched slum in the best of circumstances, which appears to be one of the worst hit sections of Port-au-Prince. This co-op was being organized by Nadege Florian, who visited the United States last fall for the opening of the exhibition of quilts at the Bennington Museum, and who is profiled in our book Patience to Raise the Sun. We are desperate to make sure she is alright.

PeaceQuilts is now organizing a relief/rebuilding fund in the wake of this tragic disaster. Contributions will be used to address immediate needs, and to help rebuild the lives, homes and health of our friends in Haiti, as well as to continue our project as soon as we are able. If you would like to make a contribution of any size, click here. We will put every penny to good use!

Peace,

Jeanne and Maureen

Jeanne Staples

Director

Maureen Matthews McClintock

Quilting Coordinator

PeaceQuilts Touring Exhibition Opened at the Bennington Museum, Bennington, VT on view from September 5 to November 8, 2009 with an Opening Reception on September 11.

Opening reception of

PATIENCE TO RAISE THE SUN - ART QUILTS FROM HAITI

Bennington Museum's Executive Director, Stephen Perkins (far right), kicks off the evening by welcoming the 100 guests attending the opening reception of Patience to Raise the Sun. Guests of honor, Sr. Angela Bélizaire and Nadège Florian (third and fourth from the left) traveled from Haiti for the event.

Quilt artist, Nadège Florian (in orange) answers questions about her work.

A video, featuring interviews with the artists, and scenes depicting their work environment and the backdrop of Haiti, plays on loop in the gallery. (To watch the video, scroll down.)

Jamie Franklin, Curator of Collections, provides information and insights during several gallery talks throughout the evening.

Everyone tapped or danced to Caribbean rhythms as Sr. Angela Bélizaire accompanied New York-based musician Bonga!

One of the highlights of the evening was the launch of the exhibition catalog which accompanies the show. This lavish publication features a superb curatorial essay by Curator of Collections Jamie Franklin, a fascinating account of the story of PeaceQuilts and profiles of the quilters by author Nora Nevin, all beautifully illustrated by the photographs of prize-winning photographer Harvey John Beth. The book and exhibition feature a remarkable collection of original quilts, offering a rare glimpse into the fascinating and rich culture of Haiti, a country plagued by poverty, social and political morass, and the ongoing effects from last year’s devastating hurricanes. Included in the exhibition are mounted photo enlargements of the quilters and their environs, a short video containing on-site interviews, and examples of objects utilized by the quilters such as a charcoal iron and brassier, used in the absence of electricity, and embroidery samplers, adding to the public’s experience.

Click here purchase your copy of the exhibition catalog Patience to Raise the Sun!

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Extra, Extra!!
Check out the new WIN-WIN fundraising opportunity for youth groups, churches, schools and other organizations. *(see below)

Also, click here to see other ways you can get involved and make a difference in someone's life.

A b o u t P E A C E Q U I L T S

The PeaceQuilts Project is enabling Haitian women to earn a living through meaningful, creative work - improving their lives and those of their families. The first model quilt-making cooperative, Artisanat Patchwork de Paix or PeaceQuilts Cooperative (in English), is located in Lilavois, Haiti, just outside the capital of Port-au-Prince. Here, women from the community are producing one-of-a-kind original art quilts informed by Haitian imagery. They earn a daily wage plus a portion of the sale price when their quilts sell. This project is being replicated in communities located in other parts of Haiti. About 45 women are now in various stages of training and being organized into cooperatives. The latest group is in Cité Soleil, one of Haiti's most notorious slums. Each cooperative will eventually become fully independent, owned and run by its members.

PeaceQuilts, an all-volunteer non-profit organization, is an outgrowth of the Martha's Vineyard Fish Farm for Haiti Project, helping the poor of Haiti since 1998.

View the PeaceQuilts video. (5 min.)

The New WIN-WIN Raffle Program!

Groups who want to help relieve poverty in Haiti, the poorest country in our hemisphere, can now do so WHILE raising funds for their own projects!  Peacequilts has developed the WIN-WIN RAFFLE PROGRAM. HERE'S HOW IT WORKS:

Simply click on the online shop link and select a quilt in any price range from $150 up. At checkout, write "raffle kit" in the section marked "Special Instructions." We will send you the quilt along with a free raffle kit containing information on the Peacequilts Project and everything you need to easily recoup the price of the quilt, while educating your members and community on the plight of our Haitian brothers and sisters. In fact, we have found that you can EASILY double or triple your investment!

The WIN-WIN KIT contains:

    250 Pre-printed raffle tickets (sold for $5 each/6 for $20 -
        potentially $1250 in sales)
    A CD with press release and publicity templates
    Photos of Haiti, its people and the Peacequilts Project
    A DVD video of Haiti and our efforts to help the poor
        (coming soon)
    Complete instructions

Click here to select a beautiful handmade quilt at our secure online shop!  Your purchase will help Haitian women earn a living with dignity.

New quilts from the PeaceQuilts Cooperative
have arrived!

New quilts have arrived from Haiti, just in time for holiday giving! Remember, when you purchase a beautiful handmade quilt, you not only give something special to a loved one, you are giving the gift of work with dignity to poor Haitians who earn a living through their handiwork. Each quilt is unique, and captures the charm of Haitian culture and imagery. Check them out at our online store by clicking the link.

PeaceQuilts online store is open!

For more information:

Jeanne Staples
Director
508-274-1104

Maureen Matthews McClintock
Quilting Coordinator
802-345-3109

mailto:info@haitipeacequilts.org