Quilt For A Cause News

Once again…..Quilt for a Cause, Inc. has done it.  A whopping $113,000 was raised from donations, grants, and the sale of 284 beautiful quilts at their Silent/Live Auction held at the Tucson Medical Center on Saturday, October 3, 2009.  Although more than 600 quilters participated from 30 States and 3 Provinces of Canada, 90% of the quilts were donated by members of the Tucson Quilter’s Guild.

The proceeds from this year’s Auction were distributed between the Tucson Medical Center Foundation and St. Elizabeth’s of Hungary Clinic.  The Tucson Medical Center will be using a part of their portion to fund the Joel Childers Teaching Series ($35,000) for training OB/GYN doctors from around the country on the latest surgical procedures.  Another $10,000 will be spent on breast cancer screening for uninsured and underinsured women.  The remaining $46,000 will be spent on updating or purchasing equipment for TMC’s GYN state of the art surgical center.  St. Elizabeth’s of Hungary Clinic will be using their portion towards helping their patients with breast cancer procedures.

Over the past 6 years, three quilt auctions have taken place at TMC and more than a quarter of a million dollars have been raised for women’s cancers within the Tucson area.  The success of these auctions could not have been successful without the generousity of everyone involved.

Check out Quilt for a Cause on YouTube.  Thanks to DJ and his wife, you can view some of the quilts donated to the Quilt for a Cause Silent Auction hanging on selected hallways of the Tucson Medical Center.  This is their way of “giving” to Quilt for a Cause” since they were unable to make a donation of quilts.  Take a minute to view this wonderful video on YouTube….http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4SDDCP1zSc (no longer available for viewing)

You can also access this video by going into YouTube. com.   Place “Quilt for a Cause” in the search mode.  Thanks to the generousity and support from the community our Auction will again be another success story.

You have until 11 a.m. on October 3, 2009 to make a bid on the Silent Auction quilts.  All quilts donated to Quilt for a Cause are in the QFAC Quilt Gallery.  This is the only place where you can view the quilts that will be at the Live Auction.  The Live Auction will begin at 1:30 p.m. on October 3 at the Marshall Auditorium, TMC.

Meander the hallways of Tucson Medical Center and enjoy over 200 gorgeous quilts and wall hangings.  Make a bid on the ones that you like and you just might be the highest bidder.   Pay the Buy Me Now price and IT IS YOURS.  The Silent Auction runs through the month of September ending at 11 a.m. on October 3. 

A Live Auction with another 42 quilts will be held on the same day.  The fun begins at 1:30 pm at the Marshall Auditorum, Tucson Medical Center with Honorary Chairs, Mrs. Grant of 94.9Mixfm and her mother, Mary Lou Levesque, Dr. Suresh Katakkar, Master of Ceremonies Liz McMahon, and Auctioneer Oscar Jaramillo.

Fifty volunteers hung and readied the quilts for the Silent Auction on Friday, August 28.  Within days over 10 quilts were sold at the Buy Me Now price.

Take a peek at what we’re going to be receiving.  Another Lynda Hall block was designed specifically for Quilt for a Cause, 2009.  Lynda, from Florida, has been instrumental in encouraging quilters from around the country to make blocks for our silent/live auction.  This year’s  result is an astonishing 4 large quilts. 

 In 2006, Lynda sent 3 beautiful quilts for our auction.  To view the individual blocks that Lynda received for the 2006 auction, check her Primitive Pieces website.  Click on Telegraph Office section, scroll down to Breast Cancer Quilts project .  To view the individual blocks sent in for the 2009 auction, click onto  Box Lunch Social.

Thank you, Lynda,  for involving quilters from around the country in our Silent/Live Auction for “Quilt for a Cause”.

Joyous Holiday

Sembetu

Hot Peppers

These quilts donated to QFAC were no sooner hung on walls within the community of Tucson when they were spotted by someone who loved them, wanted them, and promptly purchased them.

 “Hot Peppers” , a 3-dimensional wall hanging of chili peppers measuring 14″x34″, was created and donated by Carol Zupancic.  Carol dedicated this quilt to all her family and friends being treated for cancer.

 Donated by Renee Grills, ”Sembetu”  is a wall hanging measuring 36″x26″.  Renee dedicated this quilt to Sembetu and the women of Africa who struggle to find health care.    

Colorful Christmas themed quilt  “Joyous Holiday”  is based on the Lone Star pattern.  It measures 42″x42″.   This quilt was made and quilted by Judy Carlson & Linda Moss especially for Quilt for a Cause. 

Catch Carol Zupancic, our video personality, on Saddlebrooke’s Sights ‘n Sounds.  Just go to Video and scroll down to Quilt for a Cause with sewing machine icon.  View some donated quilts.  Listen to Carol’s promotion of the Silent/Live Auction on Saturday, October 3, 2009 at Tucson Medical Center.

Quilt for a Cause Vice president, Carol Zupancic, not only leads in the quilting world but also on the tennis court.  This article on Carol appeared in U.S. Tennis Association Newsletter.

Southwest Player Remembers Sister Through Quilting

Monday, April 27, 2009 4:38 PM ET

Carol Zupancic © Jen Pottheiser

By J. Fred Sidhu

Surprise, Ariz. - When Carol Zupancic’s sister Janet passed away six years from cancer, she wanted to do something to remember her.

 So Zupancic, who plays for the USTA Southwest Section women’s 6.0 super senior team, became involved with Quilt For a Cause, a non-profit organization which auctions and sells handmade quilts donated by quilters to support breast and gynecologic cancer research.

The organization’s mission is to fund research, to further educate medical professionals who treat women with breast and/or gynecological cancers using state of the art equipment and new technology, and to raise awareness in women for prevention and detection of these cancers.

“People from all across the U.S. send us quilts,” said Zupancic, who helped her Southwest team on Tuesday morning to a 2-1 victory over a Southern Section wild card team in the 2008 USTA League 6.0 & 8.0 Super Senior National Championships at the Surprise Tennis & Racquet Complex.

“It’s a way for people to feel like they’re doing something,” said Zupancic, who serves on the Quilt For a Cause board of directors as vice-president and fund raising chair.

 Zupancic, a resident of Saddlebrooke, Ariz., spoke passionately about the letters filled with emotion that Quilt For a Cause receives when people donate quilts in memory of a loved one. She also said that the organization gives 99 percent of the funds raised to cancer research.

 According to Zupancic, Quilt for a Cause is preparing for it’s annual Silent and Live Auction of contemporary and traditional quilts which will take place on Oct. 3 at the Tucson Medical Center.

At Home with Nature

 Patricia Votruba of San Diego made a quilt in honor of her friend Cindy who was diagnosed with breast cancer for the 2006 auction.  This past year she made one for her friend Kirsten who was diagnosed with adrenal cancer.  A friendly bidding battle ensued among Kirsten’s family members to be the one who paid the most for the privilege of handing the quilt to their loved one.  Thank you for your generous donation.

The second quilt was sold on the East coast.  Lucille Fiske’s brother and sister travelled to Hawaii and found a lovely pattern for this Hawaiian quilt.  Knowing that she would never make the quilt, Jeanne gave the pattern to Lucille who made the quilt and sold it back to her brother and Jeanne.  Their nice donaton went to Quilt for a Cause.

 Donations of quilts need not be sent into Tucson for the Live/Silent Auction.  They can be sold at any location with the proceeds going towards Quilt for a Cause.  Contact Jeannie Coleman (auction@quiltforacause.org) for information about this process.

A donation of $10,000 was granted to Quilt for a Cause, Inc. by the William and Mary Ross Foundation.  This is a private foundation located in Tucson, Arizona.

A smaller grant was also received from the Earl & Margery C. Chapman Foundation of Hawaii.

Contact  Phyllis Spalla (donations@quiltforacause.org) for more information about making a donation.