On Sunday, June 7, at 11:00 AM, join Peg Lee as she shares “Narrative Through Quilts.”

Nearly fifty years ago, I went to my first Northern Michigan Relief Sale—held on the first weekend of August at the county fairgrounds in Mio, a very small town in the upper lower peninsula of Michigan. The Mennonite communities from northern Michigan gather to share what they have made and offer for sale for the benefit of needy communities around the world: baked goods, food stuffs, wooden crafts and furniture, needlework, and incredibly beautiful quilts.

On Saturday, people gather in their folding chairs around an open-air wooden structure in anticipation of the quilt auction that begins with a prayer at 11:00. Volunteers display each quilt, walking it around the structure, as one of the women describes the quilt and names its makers before the auctioneer invites bids.

Each quilt has a name and a story. Each quilt is a work of art made with love and care and given to the annual auction to be offered for sale. The Mennonite community understands their work as “one way we can make a difference in the world. . . .Together we are transforming lives.”

I look forward to sharing some of these beautiful works with you.