Stitch by stitch, members of the Juniata Valley Quilters Guild expanded on the patterns they were creating, handcrafted items they could eventually give to others.
While they were at it, they also chatted, joked and made each other laugh out loud … that’s the joy of a weekend quilting retreat.
For the ninth year, a handful of guild members booked rooms at the Copper Beech Manor and lugged their sewing machines and tote bags of quilting pieces and snacks into the inn’s dining room, where they settled in to work on their latest projects.
“We have a lot of fun with them,” said Linda Petry, co-owner of the inn with her husband, Bill Petry. “It’s really a highlight of our year.”
“When they came in this morning, three or four of them said, ‘Oh, it’s so good to be home,’” Bill Petry added.
The women chose Copper Beech Manor after an online search led to finding common ground.
“Lo and behold, Linda said, ‘I’m a quilter,’” said guild member Laura Baumgardner, of Mifflintown.
“She got us,” quipped Christie Yorks, of Mifflintown, stitching on a quilted placemat.
“Most of them have phenomenal skills,” Linda Petry said. “They’re so much better than me, and I’m not just being modest.”
The women look forward to their weekend retreat and to the chance it gives them to focus on projects and deepen their friendships. Over the years they’ve also come to look forward to the warm welcome from Bill and Linda.
“We always feel like we’re at home here,” said Laura Cunningham, of Mifflintown, adding with a glance at the Petrys’ golden retriever, “I love Baxter.”
“I think the biggest thing is to be welcomed back each year,” said Marylou Hazard, Mifflintown and treasurer of the guild.
Other women mentioned the delicious breakfasts, soft sheets, Bill Petry praying for them, and Bill and Linda allowing them to rearrange downstairs furniture to accommodate their sewing machines.
“Who would do that?” asked Lucy Cargill, Mifflin, sorting through quilt pieces.
“They’ve always made us feel like family, that’s for sure,” Baumgardner agreed.
Along with the Copper Beech Manor, the women have grown to love downtown Lewisburg, particularly the Smiling Chameleon Draft House, just a couple of blocks down the street. They’ve eaten there from the start, and it’s become their favorite stop.
“Oh, the guacamole,” Yorks sighed.
“Made table-side,” Cunningham agreed. “Nothing better.”
“That’s a nice little beer place, too,” Cargill said. “They have different beers.”
In fact, the guild has left its mark at the Chameleon, thanks to Cargill and her imagination. An artist and former art teacher, she happened to create a gorgeous quilt featuring a chameleon.
“I looked at it and I said, ‘I’ve got to buy it,’” said Tedd Biernstein, owner along with his wife, Sharon, of the Smiling Chameleon.
Biernstein visited the women one evening at the Copper Beech Manor.
“They had all their sewing machines and ironing boards set up,” he said, “which opened up my eyes to see all the work that goes into it. Because each piece has to be ironed.”
Why stitch a chameleon?
“Because I’m an artist,” Cargill said. “Being an artist, you can do whatever you want. I’m not a traditional quilter. I like to add art to my quilts.”
“It wasn’t a pattern she used. She designed it herself,” Yorks said. “We showed (Biernstein) a picture, and then he fell in love with it.”
“I was honored,” Cargill said. “I thought it was just a wonderful thing to have my work displayed.”
Customers comment on the cleverly designed quilt and have their pictures taken in front of it, Biernstein said, adding that the women are “a fun bunch.”
“They would come in (over the years) as a group and have lunch and dinner, and we’d cook for them,” he said. “They just have a good time.”
Their yearly retreat allows the women to create beautiful quilted items and to build lasting relationships with the people they’ve come to know in Lewisburg. Biernstein likened it to traveling through America and seeking out the places that make you feel welcome.
“It just goes to show you what happens in establishments like this,” he said. “You meet new friends all the time.”
Quilting stitches together group of women
For nine years, members of the Juniata Valley Quilters Guild have been meeting at the Copper Beech Manor for a weekend retreat to indulge in their shared passion: quilting. Well, that and their love of snacks, lively conversation and the variety of Lewisburg’s downtown shops.
“We love Lewisburg,” said Laura Cunningham, who lives in Mifflintown and teaches quilting techniques at Hoover’s Bernina Sew, outside of Mifflinburg. “All the little shops. And everything’s within walking distance.”
There’s no doubt, though, that it’s the quilting that binds the women together. Even resting in the inn’s cozy living room, needles glinted in the light as the women took advantage of the opportunity to complete a few more stitches.
“It is really my hobby,” said Laura Baumgardner, Mifflintown. “I probably do it every day. I just enjoy it. I like working with the different colors and patterns.”
Guild member Norma Wade, McVeytown, reflected on an eagle pattern her husband asked her to make.
“He said it was the best Christmas present he ever got,” Wade said, adding that her husband had been a 31-year-career Marine.
“It’s relaxing to me. It’s rewarding,” said Christie Yorks, of Mifflintown. “And the camaraderie of our friends … I think we’re very fortunate to have the group of friends that we have.”
Tedd Biernstein, co-owner of the Smiling Chameleon Draft House, where the women love to stop each year for lunch and dinner, also noticed that comradeship despite the age differences among the women.
“You find a hobby you like, and age has no bearing,” he said.
The camaraderie is evident in the way the women laugh and tease each other, but also in the way they instinctively praise each other’s quilting skills. Lucy Cargill, Mifflin, created a quilt she calls Our Town, which depicts tiny houses and offices significant to her and the people she loves. One house represents a friend selling baked goods, another shows somebody reading on a rocking chair. There’s also a CAT scan office and a garlic business with little braids of garlic, both businesses referring to someone Cargill knows. A “Bark of the Town” shop shows her own dog getting a bath in a bucket.
“The reason it’s my favorite is because all my friends are in it,” Cargill said. “Little things in it mean a lot to all of us and to me.”
“It’s very detailed. Very realistic looking,” Baumgardner said.
Like Wade, Marylou Hazard’s favorite quilt was one made for someone else, a Civil War theme crafted with reproduction fabric dedicated to her deceased brother and his love for the Civil War era.
“That quilt is 19 years old,” said Hazard, of Mifflintown.
“I don’t know that I have a favorite quilt,” said Melanie Snyder, of Halifax, “but I really love the quilts that I’ve given to others as gifts.”
“It’s the pleasure to give rather than to keep,” Hazard agreed.
Sharon Nicholson’s favorite quilt was also a gift, customized to show the dogs she and her son-in-law had recently adopted.
“My grandmother was a quilter, so I grew up loving quilts and fabric, and I love these people,” Nicholson, of Mifflintown, said. “They both sustain me.”
Cunningham appreciates the opportunity to share her quilting techniques with her students and to express her artistic concepts through her love of quilting.
“It gives me a chance to blend the two loves,” she said.
Both Sharon McCahren, of Mifflintown, and Martha Stouffer, Port Royal and president of the Juniata Valley Quilters Guild, have taught their grandchildren to quilt and hope to see more young people taking up the hobby.
“I think what I like most about quilting is just blocking everything out that’s going on in life and just quietly enjoying yourself,” McCahren said.
“It’s gotten me through some bad times,” Stouffer said.
“I think it is a form of mental therapy,” Snyder agreed. “Not just quilting but to share that with others.”
The Guild creates quilts and other items for a variety of charities. Each stitch creates something beautiful and useful and reinforces the women’s friendship.
“You know you can count on everybody here,” McCahren said.
“We love being together,” Baumgardner said. “We’ve seen each other through a lot of stuff.”
