Donations

Community Involvement through Quilts

One key constitutional goal of the BMQG is to encourage our members to make quilts for donation to our community. The Donation Committee oversees the receiving and recording of the many donations each month. The Donations Committee will select a small number of recipient organizations for the majority of the donation quilts each year. If you can contribute a quilt towards reaching this goal your donated quilt will truly be appreciated by the recipient organization.

We welcome donations to other causes, however, there are a limited number of organizations that the Donation Committee can hold for and deliver quilts to. If you have another recipient organization in mind, please register the donation towards our goal, and ensure the Guild label is attached. You may be responsible for ensuring the item gets to your chosen recipient organization.

Members are encouraged to make at minimum one quilt each year for donation. For each quilt with a BMQG label attached that a member donates to a community organization their name is placed in a draw for a free one year Guild membership.

Over the years many regional emergency situations spark an outpouring of quilts which the guild has assisted in getting to the key personnel for local distribution. Sometimes in life we all need a quilted hug.

General Quilt Making Information:

100% cotton fabrics
100% or 80/20 cotton or bamboo batting
Top may be pieced or appliquéd
Quilting by hand or machine – NO Hand Tied quilting
Guild Label – with your name

Quilt sizes – (Approximations in INCHES)

Quilt Size Name	Dimensions – Width x Length
NICU Preemie	36 x 36
Wheel Chair	30 x 50
Lap	50 x 60
Twin	70 x 90
Double	84 x 90
Queen	90 x 96

Current Guild Sponsored Groups include:

Royal Columbian Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (RCH NICU)

One facility which many quilters donate to is the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Royal Columbian Hospital. This unit provides specialized acute care services to ill or premature newborn babies. The items for this unit need to be made to specific sizes and fabrics so if you need them, we provide backing and batting for small quilts and isolette covers. A one-time $5 deposit is required for this batting and/or backing. This nominal fee is intended to foster assurance that you will finish the quilt.

Specifics for the NICU Preemie Quilts

The goal is to have a quilt to offer every NICU patient.

36″ x 36″ (approximately)
100% cotton fabrics
Flannelette backing (pre-washed to minimize shrinkage)
100% or 80/20 Cotton batting ONLY (no bamboo)
Cotton Thread only – DO NOT USE invisible thread or tie quilt
Top may be pieced or appliquéd (hand or machine),
Quilting by hand or machine,
Guild Label (available at donations table at the General meetings

Incubator covers for the RCH NICU

The Incubator pads are used on the outside of the incubator to shield the baby from the often stark overhead lights in the nursery.

Finished to 18″ x 24″
Must use pre-washed flannelette on at least one side – may use regular cotton fabric on the other side
100% or 80/20 cotton batting (may be supplied by the Donations Committee)
edges can be finished with a regular binding method OR sewn RST together, turned and outer edge top stitched closed.
Regardless of edge finish the cover must be machine or hand quilted as desired with a maximum 5 inch space between stitching / quilting lines to ensure good stabilization for multiple washes.

Bonding Bands for the RCH NICU

These small items are used to aid in the bonding between mother and a baby in an incubator. Mother keeps band of fabric against her skin and then it is placed with the baby in the incubator to build sensory familiarity.

2 layers of prewashed flannel (no batting or quilting required)
6 x 17 inches
Can be sewn WST and use a serger or zig-zag to finish outside edge OR sewn RST together, turned and top stitch the edge closed.

Knitted Items for RCH NICU:

Stabilizers: knitted or crocheted “blankets” for swaddling a baby; Finished to 9″ x 24″ using baby yarn and a “stretchy” stitch

Toques: Small knitted or crocheted hats for a small infant. Band circumference is to be between 6 and 8 inches. Pattern: BMQG Preemie Toque (link)

Octopi: are placed in the incubator for the baby to grasp onto the spiral “legs” instead of the various medical tubes and lines. Must use Handicrafter Cotton Yarn; NO embellishments i.e. eyes, bows, buttons, etc. Pattern: BMQG Octopus (link)

Bea’s Kloset – Soroptomist International of TriCities

https://soroptimisttricities.org/about-us/

Cited from their website: “Bea’s Kloset is a ‘free store’ for women and young girls transitioning to life on their own. Using household items donated by downsizing seniors, friends of Soroptimists and other donors, our recipients are able to ‘shop for free’ for the household items they need. Women and girls in our community can be referred to us from our partner social service agencies and have the opportunity to select items from Bea’s Kloset that will transform their new apartments into functional and comfortable homes.”

The Guild welcomes a variety of Quilt donations for Bea’s Kloset for women and girls of all ages and for boys up to young teen. They are most interested in bedsized quilts (Twin to Queen).

Crossroads Hospice

http://www.crossroadshospice.bc.ca/

Crossroads Hospice Society offers compassionate support to those affected by the end of the life experience while honouring their dignity. Crossroads is located in Port Moody, and we have been supporting them from their beginning. Originally we supplied them with wall quilts to cover some empty walls when they opened the hospice, and now they are asking for large lap or single bed quilts approximately 50” x 68” for placing on top of the bed spreads. The Hospice is a warm, homelike setting. The quilts add to the homelike atmosphere and provide warmth and comfort to the patients and their visitors.

Royal Canadian Legion, Port Coquitlam & Port Moody Branches

The Royal Canadian Legions exist to provide assistance for our Canadian veterans. They are very thankful for any quilts that we can donate whether they be wheelchair, lap or bed size. They often assist veterans of all genders suffering from PTSD (post-traumatic stress syndrome) that would benefit from the warmth and comfort our quilts can provide. There is also a need for generous sized lap quilts that could be used to provide temporary warmth for an injured veteran who is waiting for an ambulance to respond.

Quilts for Survivors Canada

“Offering Comfort to Survivors”

Cited from the website: “Through a nation-wide collective effort of volunteers, quilters from across Canada craft full-sized blankets that are then sent to survivors of the Residential School System and survivors of other trauma. Their efforts are backed by generous donations that support costs of logistics and materials. These quilts are a symbol of support, respect, and love.”

100% cotton quilting fabric
Our Main block size is 12.5 and 16.5 inches square. They do accept other sizes.
Quilt tops should be 48 inches x 64 inches / lap size. Matching binding is welcomed to be included. Due to the high price of postage quilt tops only are requested and the quilts will be finished at their facility.
Completed quilts can be any size.
We ask that you avoid these types of fabric that may be triggering or offensive.
- No Religious fabric (crosses, churches, any other religious symbols)
- No School related fabric (rules, alphabet, paper, wording, etc)
- No Travel-related Fabric ( planes, trains, boats, cars, etc)
- No Graphic Illustrations or images (weapons, inappropriate wording, foul language, drugs, etc)
- No Gang-related fabrics (bandanas , etc)
- You can always check with us by emailing[email protected]

2025 Challenge

Quilts for Survivors will be in attendance at Canadian Quilt Association (CQA) convention in Toronto in June 2025. Starting in April they are hosting a country wide challenge to collect bindings for the many quilts underway.

2.5 inch wide strips joined with a diagonal seam.
Fold in half lengthwise and press
Total binding length no less than 230 inches.
Write on small piece of paper the actual length and attach with a small safety pin
Place in a clean and sealed baggie.