This is just a sampling of the many quilts Marie has produced and been responsible for being produced. She has given her family and others dozens of baby quilts, camp quilts, and bedding quilts. Ten or more years ago she was called as the quilting specialist in her ward. At that time she organized a program of weekly quilting. Many women began coming, materials were donated, and teaching happened. At first, they quilted for each other, but soon other quilts were made. Marie decided that these quilts needed to be used for a good purpose and began sending them to the humanitarian center. She served faithfully until January 2008, when the original Bear Lake Ward was split and everyone was released from their callings. At that time, Garden City's mayor, Ken Hansen, asked Marie to continue making humanitarian quilts using the city's Convention Center. The women participating in the humanitarian quilting efforts have continued making from five to twelve quilts each week. In 2007 the women made and delivered 370 quilts to the humanitarian center and have made a tremendous start this year. All fabric, batting, yarn, tacks, stands, thread, clamps, etc. are donated. It seems whenever the group starts to get low in some of these items, more are donated.
Because Marie gets the tops and backs ready for each Tuesday's quilting, and she actually puts on the quilts each Monday morning, then binds many of these quilted items the rest of the week, she has not spent as much time these last ten years making her own tops and quilts. She still manages to squeeze in a few pieced quilts of her own as she spends her time at the cutting table and sewing machine.
As the years have gone by and Marie continues to piece beautiful quilt tops, she has concluded that she needs help in quilting some of them. A friend, Vicky Argyle has answered the call. With the exception of two, quilted by Mary Fojtec, Vicky has machine quilted all labeled as machine quilted. Marie wishes to recognize and thank these two friends for this service.
Marie not only loves quilts and immerses herself in working on them, she is also known as the town's flower lady. Each spring she tills the soil in her flower beds and plants seeds. She weeds, waters, and talks to her plants. Each summer her garden becomes a fantastic display of color and beauty. Hundreds of people drive by just to admire the flowers and smell the wonderful fragrance they produce.
Her home and yard are featured in a painting, puzzle and tin painted by Eric Dowdle. It is also pictured in a book called " Bear Lake -- Life in a Lakeside Town" written by Charlie Sheehan . The most frequently asked question posed at the Visitor's Bureau as people are coming into the area is "How do we find the house with all the flowers?"
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