December 2020 Newsletter

December 1, 2020    News   

The Crafty Ladies

of The Resort

By Dale Dauten

About to meet two of The Resort’s “Crafty Ladies” and not knowing anything about one of their main activities, quilting, I looked it up online. There I found a playful list of “quilting rules,” with this as the first one: “Don’t bleed on the quilt.” Yikes.

Then I visited with Gayle Gilmore and Liz Milner — no bleeding, just a lot of laughing as the two joked about themselves and the work they love. Even so, everyone is serious about helping La Mesita, the low-income housing complex that the group supports.

Gayle put it this way:

“Let me tell you about the first time I visited there, 10 or 12 years ago. Back then they were a shelter in an old converted motel. During our tour, one of the staff people said to us, ‘We run out of blankets, so any new adults who come in are getting two kids’ blankets.’

“I said, ‘We can help with that.’”

And they have, sending quilts year after year. You might wonder why they don’t ever “catch-up,” why the quilt inventory hasn’t reached capacity; it’s because the facility always has a waiting list and new residents are given quilts that they can call their own, that they keep.

(PHOTOS: That’s Gayle on the left and Liz on the right, showing off two of the dozens of quilts headed to La Mesita)

And while the group is known for its quilts, that’s not all there is to the Crafty Ladies: “About half the half the group ties quilts,” Liz explained, “while the rest do crafts. Some bring their own knitting or crocheting, while others do Christmas treat bags for the kids at La Mesita or make ornaments.

Plus, there is their big annual event, the La Mesita Benefit. This year’s is especially important because the facility itself can’t do their annual fundraiser. Liz described this year’s plan for The Resort:

“We can’t do things like we normally do, and La Mesita is in need of so much. Our Benefit will be on Sunday, December 6th, at 6PM. All the quilts will be on display, and we’ll have a craft sale and a bake sale. We’re asking people to bring canned goods for admission, or make a donation of any amount.

“We’re also having a raffle. We have a quilt, gift baskets, a blanket, glass plates and more for the winners. You can see what we’re raffling off at the Post Office.” (See the photo below.) Raffle tickets are for sale now, as you’ve already heard if you’ve run into Gayle or Liz. “Because we have so many people who haven’t been able to come to the park yet this year, we need everyone who can to help.” Gayle smiled and added, “And I consider anyone who’s ever lived in the park to be fair game.”

Speaking of help, more volunteers for quilting are always welcome and needed. Indeed, when I asked Gayle and Liz for some personal background to include with the article, Gayle said,

“Just say I’m tall, skinny and blonde. Then give all the credit to the volunteers. This is a non-glory job – to come and tie knots for two hours – and the volunteers deserve all the credit.”

ACTIVITIES CALENDAR

AROUND THE PARK: AN UPDATE FROM GEORGE

(Flowers outside the post office)

When we asked George Igault, head of the park’s management company, for an update on the park, he focused on the new cameras being installed: “These will let residents see on their home televisions what’s going on,” George said. “We’ll have cameras at the front gates and around the park. They’re for security, but also residents can check on activities. I ran into one of the residents a while back who remembered the system we used to have and I asked him what he liked about it. He said that he loves to play volleyball at the pool and he could check at home to see if there a game going on.”

As for timing, George added, “The cameras are going up now at Silveridge and then the company will move over to installation at The Resort.”