This year marks our 175th anniversary, and we’re highlighting the evolution of our great organization. These are photos of the Sewing Society, circa August 1929. The first quilt frame was placed in the sewing room in 1924. The St. Joseph Ladies Sewing Society quilts are known around the world. One was taken to Qatar and other St. Joseph quilts can be found in France, Belgium, Zambia, Saudi Arabia, Spain and Poland — with the latter being a special quilt with a special story.
Lech Walesa was honored with the Bellarmine Medal in 1990 for his leadership in the Polish Solidarity Movement, the movement that led, in 1989, to the overthrow of the Polish Communist government and free elections. When Bellarmine University President Dr. Eugene Petrik and his wife visited Poland in 1990 to present Walesa with the medal, they took along a special quilt created by the ladies of the St. Joseph Ladies Sewing Society. The quilt carried a design of red poppies — the poppy is the national flower of Poland.
Source: Glenn O. Rutherford, Love’s Home: The Works and Wonders of St. Joseph Children’s Home 1849-2002
This post was supported by funds made available by the Kentucky Department for Public Health’s Office of Health Equity from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for STLT Public Health Infrastructure and Workforce, under RFA-OT21-2103.
The content of this post are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of or endorsement by the Kentucky Department for Public Health or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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