Honoring my big brother

On Nov. 11 will be the one year anniversary of the passing of my big brother. He was 13 years older than me and has always been my idol. (I am sure that I was always the pesty baby sister in his eyes). His daughters and I were in the process of planning his 65 birthday and retirement gift. (which was to be a patriotic quilt because he was a very proud vet). Not only is the 11th the anniversary of his death it is also my birthday.

I January I decided to honor him by making the quilt and give it away. My brother and sister purchased the fabric, I sewed the top and my mother (86 years young) hand quilted the quilt. We then donated it to our hometown's (population 250) fire department for their annual fundraiser benefit auction. I cannot tell you how many tears were shed in the making of that quilt between myself and my mother. However, it was a very healing process and I had no desire to sew on anything else until that was completed. It made me feel really good when it was purchased for $1200.

As this anniversay rolls aroung I am finding myself once again not interested in sewing. But I wanted to share with everyone a photo of the finished quilt.

Attachment 59550

That is just amazing. May your memories comfort you as you face this difficult time. God Bless.

Very pretty quilt and it drew a good price for a great cause. It also allowed you to heal some as you worked. A very special quilt.

Absolutely stunning quilt filled with such meaning. Thank you for sharing that with us and I am sure your brother is very proud.

Your quilt is beautiful, and also a beautiful way to remember his life. I would bet that in your hometown everyone knows everyone, so the person who pirchased it surely knee him and felt the love that went into making such a wonderful tribute. November is a toigh month at oir house as well.... 11/1 would be my first sijs 28th birthday. He passed away after 7 short years, and a piece of my heart went with him.

What a wonderfule honor. Thank you for sharing such a special memory

Thank you for sharing this stunning, and very meaningful quilt. You have certainly honored your brother in a ender full way.. As a former paramedic, I am a lifetime member of my fire department, so I know what this gift, and the money it raised, meant to your department.

God Bless...

Stunning... what a beautiful tribute to your brother...:)

Thank you for sharing such wonderful story about your brother's quilt. How awesome! I hope you come back to quilting soon, you have a talent for it and I think your brother would want you to keep it up! Blessings.

This quilt is extremely beautiful!!!!
Thank You so much for sharing it with us and the story behind it!

That is a beautiful quilt and an even more beutiful thing to do. How awful to lose a sibling and what a wonderful way to honour him.

What a wonderful way to honour your brother, beautiful quilt.

What a wonderful tribute.

What a wonderful tribute to your brother. I'm sure he's very proud of you and your family for doing this.

Touching story and an amazingly Beautiful quilt. Awesome!

Hi Jana....welcome to the forum. Sorry for the loss of your brother but what a wonderful way to honor him. The quilt is beautiful.....you and your mother did an amazing job on this quilt. Donating to a fundraiser that did so well must have been a comforting feeling. I also hope that you will keep quilting. Thanks for sharing your story with us.

Whoever ended up with that quilt got not only an amazing beautiful quit, but one that was filled with an amazing amount of love. It's a beautiful way to honor him, help the local community, and share your story with people. It's absolutely beautiful.

What a great tribute to your brother, his memory lives on in the quilt as well as in the hearts and souls of his family.

Jana, I'm sorry for your loss, and thank your family for your brother's service to our country.
Your quilt is stunning, and I can certainly understand why it fetched such a good price.
I hope you will be gentle with yourself during this time, and that soon you'll be enjoying sewing once again; you certainly are very talented, and your gift of sewing would be a great blessing to anyone. Hugs to you and your family, ~ Sally \0/