Article
50 Quilts for Build-A Bed
by Madeline Spector
“When you lie down, you will not be afraid. When you lie down your sleep will be sweet.”
— Proverbs 3:24
SJD Quilters Prepare 50 Quilts for Build a Bed
Last year, after our Build A Bed Service Saturday at St. John the Divine, something beautiful began to take shape.
Sitting together in the Sewing Guild, Marti Clement turned to her friend Marguerite Radhakrishnan with a simple question: “Do you want to make some quilts?” The idea was ambitious: to create a quilt for every single bed to be built at the 2026 Build A Bed event.
They weren’t quite sure what they were saying yes to.
Soon, Carol Hanley Garcia, “the real quilter,” as Marti affectionately calls her, joined the effort. The three began forming a plan. Throughout the summer, the church buzzed with a quiet but faithful industry. The Sweet Sleep Quilting Bee set up shop. Women from the church and the Quilt Guild of Greater Houston came and went, some seasoned seamstresses, others eager beginners. Some sewed. Others cut fabric. Some simply showed up ready to help however they could. Children and youth joined in, too.
Parishioners and Quilt Guild members generously donated fabric, batting, and even completed quilts and tops they already had at home. Tea Time Quilting provided discounted batting and fabric, and even quilted one of the quilts. A friend in Louisiana quilted two of the tops and mailed them back. What began as a hopeful idea became a community-wide effort.
As summer turned to fall and the church calendar filled up again, the group moved their sewing day to Fridays. And then came the moment of truth. They had the quilt tops, but getting all fifty quilts fully quilted and finished? That felt impossible.
“There was just no way,” Marti said. “It looked like we weren’t going to get them all done.”
So, they prayed. They trusted. They asked for help. And the help came.
Quilt sandwiches were carried to Guild meetings with simple requests: “Will you quilt a quilt for us?” The answer, again and again, was yes.
Today, finished quilts are stacked in Room 203 - washed, folded, and ready. Each one is unique and stitched with care.
One quilt is made from strip blocks sewn by elementary-aged parishioners learning to sew for the very first time. Another was started by Marleigh Lowe before welcoming her baby, then lovingly finished by others. Several youth stitched complete tops. Every quilt carries the work of many hands.
Beyond the fabric and thread, something else formed over these months: friendships across generations, new connections between parishioners, shared laughter, and perseverance. What began as a service project became a ministry of presence and community.
“We couldn’t have done it without the Quilt Guild,” Marti said. “And with a lot of prayer and trust that it was going to work out.”
Soon, these quilts will be placed on the pews to be blessed before our 2026 Build A Bed Service project. Then, they will be delivered to children who are not only receiving a bed of their own, but a tangible reminder that their community cares.
Fifty beds.
Fifty quilts.
Countless stitches of love.
- On Sunday, March 22, the quilts stitched for the 2026 Sleep in Heavenly Peace event will be blessed at the 9 am service. The quilts will remain on display during the 11:15 am Church service.
- Registration for the 2026 Sleep in Heavenly Peace all-parish bed-building event on Saturday, April 11, is open!