Dear Quilting Friends

 

It has been a while since we last made contact but we have been busy trying to find an answer to the question of "will there be A Quilters Gathering this year?"

 

Last November, at the close of the 2015 Conference A Quilters Gathering was in transition without a venue, dates, or teaching staff in place for 2016.  These last few years we have all been aware of the ongoing shifts and changes in the quilting community. Quilting has been evolving, as everything does, and it was time to start thinking about how conferences like A Quilters Gathering could best meet the challenge of changing times.

 

The first step we took was to have an in depth question and answer session at the regular Saturday night gathering of quilters. The focus, of course, was the future of A Quilters Gathering. The response was a spirited, honest, and open discussion in which everyone participated freely sharing their thoughts, feelings and idea, from likes to dislikes, from what must be kept to what must not. In conclusion, they were firmly and fully in agreement that A Quilters Gathering is important to quilters and it must continue. 

 

Energized by this show of enthusiasm we set to work looking for a more convenient and congenial venue, talked to many potential teachers, designed and re-designed a program of tempting classes and interesting events. The goal was to make it happen.  

 

Unfortunately, no matter how hard we tried, the pieces were not coming together. Finally, after much soul searching, it was decided that the time had come to suspend A Quilters Gathering. This was an extremely difficult decision to make and and even more so painful to announce.

 

We cannot say how long this may be, we do not know the future. At this time, while A Quilters Gathering is not active, we will continue to keep Eastcoast Quilters Alliance 3, LLC A Quilters Gathering as a registered, valid company and its logos, trademarks, titles, etc. protected.

 

For 27 years, since 1989, we have loved planning the Gathering and then enjoying it with you the first weekend in November.  We will greatly miss not being with you this November.  But we will remember.  We will remember the excitement each year of being surrounded by beautiful quilts, terrific classes, and wonderful friends. We shopped, we cheered when winning prizes at the gathering, and we shared so much that will always be with us.  We brought you the Gathering for 27 years and for 27 years you came to it and brought it to life.  For this, and for so much more, we thank you.