Host a Quilt Block That Tells Your Story

Volunteer painters Jeanne Moran and Maya de Maria with the first 4'x4' barn quilt block nearing completion, to be mounted on Steve and Wendy Gerolamy's property on the Tapley 1/4 Line.

Volunteer painters Jeanne Moran and Maya de Maria with the first 4’x4′ barn quilt block nearing completion, to be mounted on Steve and Wendy Gerolamy’s property on the Tapley 1/4 Line.

Quilt block designers involved with the local Barn Quilt Trail project are hard at work with a number of homeowners, businesses and landowners, creating unique images that reflect the story each host wants to tell. Several of the quilt blocks are at the painting stage, and volunteer painters are transferring the designs, layer by layer, onto the specially prepared wooden panels.

More than a year in the planning, the Cavan Monaghan Barn Quilt Trails group is now actively seeking hosts who are interested in being a part of this intriguing trail. Barn quilts are painted wooden blocks installed on barns, heritage buildings, businesses or on posts in front of homes. They can be as large as 8 feet by 8 feet, or, when the space available suits a smaller block, 4 feet by 4 feet. The designs are based on quilt patterns, and they each tell a story. The aim of the barn quilt trail committee is for the quilt blocks to reflect the people, the history and the culture of our township. The group has a website, www.cmbqt.com that includes information on hosting. Members of the committee are happy to answer any questions about hosting; Lenka Petric leads the group, 705-944-5996.

It is the group’s goal to have the trails network connect the villages and hamlets throughout the township and the countryside between. In particular, they are excited about recognizing the importance of agriculture and entrepreneurship here in our community.

Barn Quilt Trails have been described as one of the largest grassroots public art movements in history. People from many walks of life with a variety of skills and experience are working together on this initiative, and as the project grows, so it seems do the number of interested volunteers. They all see this as a way to promote the area and recognize the values, the creativity and the skills of its residents. They anticipate the trails network becoming, in a fairly short time, a source of pride and connectedness for those who live here, and an enjoyable and stimulating way for cyclists, drivers and walkers to learn about and appreciate all our rural community has to offer. For information about other barn quilt trails in Ontario, visit http://www.barnquilttrails.ca/.

By Celia Hunter

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