tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post3146620796358154624..comments2024-03-28T03:17:28.911-04:00Comments on Art With a Needle: Quilts for Japan -- I don't think soKathleen Loomishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05930922068379938756noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-39825754938628507542011-03-26T16:06:30.160-04:002011-03-26T16:06:30.160-04:00Hi Kay! I don't recall the specifics of my bee...Hi Kay! I don't recall the specifics of my beef with the Red Cross 10 years ago, but it also had to do with bad management in some local chapters, mishandling of blood banks, and other unhappy episodes. So I switched to other charities. <br /><br />I think that if you believe in an organization and its goals, it's better to give unrestricted funds than to earmark. However, if people do give earmarked funds, I think it's the duty of the charity to follow their wishes.kathynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-69736757024970464362011-03-26T09:46:03.222-04:002011-03-26T09:46:03.222-04:00I agree with you about this. I'm sure that th...I agree with you about this. I'm sure that the quilts people (including my guild) sent out after 9/11 ended up in landfills. However, I don't agree about your quarrel with the Red Cross. If the Red Cross got too much money after 9/11, what should they have done with it? It seems to me that by using it for other causes they were just doing what you praise Doctors without Borders for doing.<br /><br />I posted this the other day but it apparently didn't take because I didn't wait for the second screen to appear. Did you know your blog shows the entry twice?Kayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05669924514599648160noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-89493996798843652062011-03-25T10:27:41.540-04:002011-03-25T10:27:41.540-04:00I make a lot of service quilts but I prefer to giv...I make a lot of service quilts but I prefer to give them locally. There are plenty of people in my community in need. Last year alone there were 25 kids at the high school classified as homeless and/or pregnant. The United Way Women's Shelter has a program to train women and upon graduation, the women have a small unfurnished apt to lease. I try to make quilts for them so they have something on their beds. <br /><br />It doesn't take much effort to find genuine need (for quilts) at home.Debra Dixonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14959081275116311853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-25017695043439034412011-03-24T14:18:30.047-04:002011-03-24T14:18:30.047-04:00I belong to the 'give money' school of hel...I belong to the 'give money' school of help and agree with Katy's sentiments totally. Yes, there is an issue when you respond to a particular disaster and it does not feel that the money is going to that place. One way round this is to give regularly to a charity of your choice,knowing that the money will make its way to the latest disaster. Having given to the Red Cross for specific disasters after Haiti we opted for a smaller charity, Shelterbox, which began as a Rotary initiative here in Cornwall. We know that their overheads are low and their ability to respond very quick. We now pay them a set amount each month. I am originally from New Zealand so I have also made a bigger one-off donation to the official fund for the Christchurch earthquake. I would like to have been able to give to a more targeted fund for the poorer areas of the city but that is impossible from abroad and at least this way they get more from a UK tax break called Gift Aid. New Zealand is a culture where you give practical help e.g. food after a bereavement, and I realise that the quilt instinct is similar to that but keep practical help for local emergencies.reensstitcherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11240482617783139942noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-89513846209592389582011-03-22T20:25:24.849-04:002011-03-22T20:25:24.849-04:00geezzz..some get quite touchy...I agree that sendi...geezzz..some get quite touchy...I agree that sending $$'s is the BEST to do! Well said post, Kathy!Robbiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13506964994589004458noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-45874459908000789902011-03-22T20:16:35.844-04:002011-03-22T20:16:35.844-04:00I must admit to being highly amused that an intern...I must admit to being highly amused that an internet troll called you an internet troll :PMichelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04306275747304783618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-32465519879405691002011-03-22T18:03:40.106-04:002011-03-22T18:03:40.106-04:00Locals get a quilt if I can get it there easily .....Locals get a quilt if I can get it there easily ... otherwise money is what is required, but many of the groups who are pretty much first on site need the money before an event so they have a wharehouse full of medical supplies, tents, bedding, food, etc ready to pick up and deliver as quickly as possible.<br /><br />Red Cross were criticised in Australia when they used money donated to the then current emergency to restock for the next ... so who paid for the tents, clothing and food thay had on the ground within hours? And if they didn't use the money being donated then to restock,who would pay for the next lot?<br /><br />As for lap quilts in Japan ... it is snowing,so what is the good of a lap quilt? Give a full size quilt to your nearest emergency group who can use it to keep someone warm in the next disaster!<br /><br />Judy BAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-82590118064140971022011-03-22T17:40:19.326-04:002011-03-22T17:40:19.326-04:00Thank you, Kathleen, for your intelligent, common ...Thank you, Kathleen, for your intelligent, common sense thoughts on this situation. I agree that quilts are the last thing in the world that people who have been devasted by a disaster would be in need of. Donations to an organization of your choice is much more efficient.Mary Keaslerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04908710230407490209noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-15593052163589350092011-03-22T17:05:49.766-04:002011-03-22T17:05:49.766-04:00I saw some similar thing locally. "Send lap q...I saw some similar thing locally. "Send lap quilts to Japan" Why? If you're gonna go to the effort, make it big enough to be a real blanket for someone to actually use! <br /><br />Kathy, Please say that putting a 50 cent can of food in a $12.95 FedEx box with a $2 can opener is a joke. If not, those QA ladies must surely have been huffing their June Tailor Spray baste. <br /><br />@Anonymous - I guess it comes down to whether you want to actually do some good for people in need or just give yourself some warm fuzzies and some new fabric. <br /><br />If it is an emergency, I hope to shout that someone sends me some doctors and the red cross. I won't need a quilt 6 weeks from Tuesday after I already starved to death or bled out.Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11563230869151812456noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-5851619123852411272011-03-22T15:43:02.272-04:002011-03-22T15:43:02.272-04:00I guess I think there's room for both. Emergen...I guess I think there's room for both. Emergencies require efficiency. And that means money to those who know what they're doing, and are ready to do it. (Groups like the Red Cross and others have their issues for sure!If we wait to act until everything's perfect, we'll never get anything done...)But many people want to reach out in a more personal way. I get that. It's like giving my kids money for a gift- it may be the most needed, but it's nice to give something more personal too. So maybe cash now, quilt later.sallgoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06257935141857664852noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-62088379831041286882011-03-22T13:54:31.345-04:002011-03-22T13:54:31.345-04:00Anonymous -- not to worry. You can post what you ...Anonymous -- not to worry. You can post what you want and I won't wash anything up on your shores. <br /><br />I am in favor of caring and sympathy in practically every circumstance of human distress. But I believe it behooves intelligent people to think about how things are accomplished, and choose the better way over the worse way.kathynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-55530865573137703842011-03-22T12:57:07.337-04:002011-03-22T12:57:07.337-04:00Pretty much my thoughts. I found this to be an int...Pretty much my thoughts. I found this to be an intelligent response and not at all venomous.Gerriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06292762162661584206noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-588118538433483895.post-1428711553815360872011-03-22T12:33:25.717-04:002011-03-22T12:33:25.717-04:00You personify the internet Troll.
If you are bei...You personify the internet Troll. <br /><br />If you are being sarcastic, you picked a miserable subject. I hope "Their" willingness to care and be sympathetic to others in distress (no matter how it's accomplished) has not dried up when your time of need rolls around. Yes, posted anonymously because I wouldn't want your venom washing up on my shores.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com