Quilts made during COVID-19 pandemic come out of isolation to appear at art centre
CBC
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison would end her almost-daily news briefings by reminding Islanders to be kind to each other.
Reina Lamothe and her quilting group must have been listening.
At that time, they came up with an idea — the COVID Caring and Sharing Challenge.
They asked their members to make a quilt for someone who was having a difficult time during the pandemic — maybe a health-care worker or somebody who was sick or lost a family member.
Lamothe couldn't immediately think of anybody. Then it came to her.
"I had this fabric that had angels on it and I was like, 'Oh my God, Dr. Morrison.' And from there I proceeded to make the quilt."
The quilt, which she named Angel in Disguise, is among more than 40 items on display this summer at the Eptek Centre of Art and Culture in Summerside. The display is called Quilts of COVID.
Penelope Player said the COVID-19 pandemic, when people were spending more time at home, was the perfect time for a quilting project. And it just so happened there was a fabric "calling her from the back of the drawer."
"The thing with COVID, I would have never done it, because it really was a lot of work and very complex," said Player, who spent hundreds of hours on the quilt.
"There was as much picking out as there was sewing in, and to try to get all the points lined up and everything evenly matched … and suddenly it was done."
Player said she was proud to see her quilt on display Sunday.
"At a certain point, you're almost like a kid at a dance recital or a hockey game. You want people there to see you."
Player said because people were quilting in isolation, she was eager to see the work of others and the stories behind them — like Lamothe's quilt for Morrison.
Lamothe remembers seeing Morrison working as an emergency room doctor in Charlottetown during the COVID-19 pandemic, and there were many stressful times when she looked like she could use a quilt.
Thousands in Quebec's Montérégie region will not get their flu and COVID-19 vaccine directly at their seniors' residence anymore.
A 17-year-old boy is dead after he was shot by an RCMP officer in Norway House Cree Nation on Friday.
Saskatchewan road crews and residents alike are getting ready for another icy blast of winter this weekend.
Student leaders at the University of Alberta are criticizing the school's plan to hike tuition — particularly for international students.
Environment Canada says a new fall storm will bring winds gusting up to 110 km/h to southwestern British Columbia on Friday, potentially causing more outages and travel disruption.
Environment Canada says strong winds could cause damage to roofs and windows in P.E.I.'s Kings County and Prince County this weekend, with power outages possible from fallen tree branches.
City council has approved a 3.6 per cent increase in municipal property taxes for next year. The decision follows five days of debate on adjustments to next year's civic budget.
Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish has resigned from the Peel Police Service Board.
Public health in Yellowknife is reducing some services over the holiday season due to staffing shortages.
Two premiers are asking Ottawa to cover the provincial cost of the Trudeau government's promised tax holiday.
Former Alberta MLA Derek Fildebrandt fist-pumped from the prisoner's box as a Calgary judge acquitted him on all four counts of uttering threats to a group of 13- and 14-year-old boys whom he chased in a truck through his southwest neighbourhood last spring.