July 2025 Meeting with Special Guest Kena Dorsey
Welcome to another membership year!
Karen, MQG Area 3 rep:
Karen shared some upcoming changes to MQG summer programs. There won 't be a charity challenge, but there is a sewalong, a fundraising auction for the MQG and changes to the QuiltCon Community Quilt guidelines. Registration for QuiltCon is right around the corner.
President:
Last year's community charity quilt was handed over to the winner of our vote, Hello Neighbor. Our "35 Sisters" bridge quilt is also currently hanging at the Heinz History Center through April 2026. We are taking a break and focusing on local organizations because of the number of contenders when we voted for where to place "High Anxiety". Groups, or pods, will assemble quilts from the donated fabric available and choose the recipient groups. September's sew day will be an opportunity for groups to work together and quilts will need to be completed by the December sew day.
Treasurer:
The final finance report was given for the previous membership year. A modest $7 profit was forecasted last summer, but unexpected expenses from a moldy storage tote required replacing some of our supplies. We also extended an extra deposit for the 2027 Crestfield retreat to ensure it stayed in May. Even with a discounted Zoom package and some donations, we fell short. These expenses will be assessed for the budget for the new membership year and presented in August.
Membership:
We welcome several new members and thank all of the membership for their prompt renewals. The Zeffy renewal system was a welcome shortcut this year and Membership & Social Media really worked hard to make it a smooth option for renewals. We are now at 75 members, a new record!
Programming:
The Eq8 workshop is July 14 - thanks, Kim! We also have Quilt Buddy meetups planned for August. A successful field trip to DC was enjoyed and another field trip to Sue Spargo's studio is in the works. Please RSVP asap. An 8-week quilt swap is also on the calendar for Dec-Jan 2026.
Challenges:
Q2 Challenge was FPP, and was supported by Becky's FPP talk at the May Meeting.
Q3 Challenge is Nostalgia, based on a fond memory that never fails to make you smile.
July Programming:
In collaboration with member TaMara Howard and her Folk Quilts Studio, we are proud to have brought Pittsburgh native, Kena Tangi Dorsey, to the Pittsburgh MQG. We encouraged members of the public to also join us for this presentation. Ms. Dorsey shared a rich slideshow of her beginnings in Pittsburgh, and her work in theater that eventually led her to quilting. Her quilts are inspired by the Harlem Renaissance and weaves traditional symbols and imagery with bold colors and prints. She entertained us with stories of a quilt she made for a friend, also a Pittsbugh native. Can you guess their identity? Ms. Dorsey brought along an assortment of African fabrics that viewers could purchase. Her enthusiasm and expression for her work moved many of us and we are grateful to TaMara and KTD for being able to fit us into her schedule.
Show and Tell
July 2023 Recap
July was all about Color Theory, transitioning between quarterly challenges and reports from the Treasurer & Social Media.
If you tuned in to the meeting via Zoom, we know how painful it was to keep having it drop. We are taking steps to improve the signal for August. Hopefully, no matter when or how you joined us in July, this meeting recap is beneficial.
Programs:
The Q2 challenge of using pre-cuts was a success! All entries can be found on the Challenges page here. They were not included in the Show & Tell carousel below.
The theme for this month is Color Theory. You can access the Meeting Slides in the Member-Only area of the website. Follow this path: Members-Only>Archive>Programs>Meeting Slides>July. There you’ll find the links to the resources that Erin shared and the slides with various definitions and inspirations for choosing colors.
Future programs: August - Skill Builders and Framing Quilt Blocks, September - Sew Day and assembling the charity quilt, October - fabric weaving, November - temperature quilt
Quarterly challenges: Q3 - Limited color palette/due October. Using 3-5 colors, make and finish a quilt of any size. Use the hashtag #pghmqgltdcolor
Sara Goer workshop coming in October - Building An Improv Toolbox… You can now register for the workshop in the Members-Only area: Members-Only>Workshop Registration. You can find more information on the workshop here.
Membership:
The membership year was over as of June 30, 2023. Renewals were due by then. You can now pay by cash or check, and you can also mail your payment to the Treasurer at the following address:
Pittsburgh Modern Quilt Guild
PO Box 105
Wexford, PA 15090
At this point, if you haven’t renewed your membership you will be removed from our social media groups and our roster. You are still a member of the MQG “mother ship” until the end of 2023.
President:
The 2024 QC charity quilt programs has some changes, but we are aiming to be completed in time for entry. The winning design was a yellow version of the Deco quilt by Lo & Behold Stitchery. The volunteers are coordinating the fabric purchase and will have kits to take at the August meeting. A photo of the mockup can be found in the slides.
We are always happy to share news of other workshops, lectures, etc. However, we would ask that members with this information create their own social media post that we can share. We will highlight that information on our platforms, including any posts you might create to sell your sewing items.
Please consider stepping up to lead next year! Several offices will have met their term limits and an organization is only as good as its volunteers.
Social Media:
Progress updates on the website and social media refresh were shared. The new site is active and feedback is positive. All of the old site’s links still need to be updated to the new site. No decision was made regarding a public versus private presence on Facebook. Streamlining the accounts to match emails for continuity and media sharing will take place and the group vs page question will be revisited in the future.
A general overview of Instagram terms and functions was quickly covered. In the meeting slides, a link to an instructional article is provided.
Treasurer:
Jen provided a financial statement for the 2022-2023 year, with details regarding our balance. This information is also in the meeting slides. A budget for the 2023-2024 year is in the works and will be presented at the August meeting.
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Things we want you to remember! In the Members-Only area, you can now submit Show & Tell, register for the workshop and submit a member bio! As functionality grows, we will make more announcements. Thanks for the support of the new website!
