Dear Quilting Friends,

We need to inform you about some changes that are happening for the remainder of this guild year. Lincoln Quilters Guild is "Dedicated to Promoting and Preserving the Art of Quilting" according to our mission statement. The events of 2020 are causing us to carry out that mission in some new and different ways than we’ve used in the past.

The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services posted guidelines that are effective August 1, 2020 through August 31, 2020. After a long and thoughtful discussion about the guild plans for this year, the Board has voted to abide by the guidelines suggested by the Health department in regards to our August meeting and workshop. The guidelines allow for a group meeting that is limited to 50% of the room’s capacity. That allows us to have no more than 150 members at our August 10 guild meeting. We are hearing from some of you that you will not be able to attend. And we understand and support that decision. For those who would like to attend the meeting, we have put these following measures into place.

• We will set up however many chairs (under 150) that will fit in the Heartland room, with each chair 6 feet away from the next chair. (This exceeds the restrictions that would allow us to have groups of 8 chairs together.)
• We will disinfect surfaces prior to the meeting.
• We will not have a membership sign-in of any kind to prevent handling of pens and to promote social distancing.
• We will provide hand sanitizers in various spots in the room.
• Masks are mandatory, except for the person speaking at the podium, who must maintain 6 foot distancing from other people.
• There will be no Show and Tell, and only 3 round tables in the lobby for drop-off of Cuddles, placemats, or Quilts of Valor projects.
• The Health department guidelines encourage anyone over age 65, or anyone with underlying health conditions, or anyone with other heightened risk to stay home as much as possible.
• Do not attend if you or any of your close contacts are not feeling well.
• NO ONE who has any concerns about meeting in a larger group should worry about missing this meeting. Your health is priority #1.
• If you need to make a committee announcement, and are uncomfortable meeting in August,  email your announcement to president@lincolnquiltersguild.org and Connie can read it to those in attendance.

The Tuesday, August 11, workshop will be held at IQM with these restrictions.

• Mask wearing required
• Bring your own iron and cutting mats—no communal equipment provided.
• Social distancing expected.
• Bring your own lunch and beverage.
• Tables will be in 4 sections of 4 quilters.

As we try and project ahead for the rest of the year we considered the probability of additional restrictions from the Health Department (with the start of classes at Lincoln’s colleges and schools, as well as the potential for the addition of seasonal flu numbers to the current COVID virus statistics, and the possibility of a surge.) Based on these concerns, August will be our only remaining 2020 meeting that will be an “in-person” attendance format.

In September, we will be doing a trial of our first ZOOM speaker. This presentation will be a speaker presentation only, and will not include a business meeting. Instructions for joining the ZOOM presentation will be included in the September email blast. Many of you already have experience with the ZOOM format, while others may have concerns about some of the reported ZOOM issues. Participating in this meeting format is a personal decision also- as you weigh the advantages and concerns—just like the in-person meeting attendance decision.

Hopefully, this format  will provide a way for the membership to learn about “Scrap Quilt Secrets” from our speaker, Diane Knott. We will let you know soon if she is able to present her workshop via ZOOM.

The Board has also decided that due to the events we’ve all been facing this year, there will be no renewal dues charged  (for the 2020-2021 guild year) to anyone whose name is on the current membership list. If there is someone whose name is not on the current membership list and who wants to join next year, they will need to pay the $50.00 yearly dues, unless joining on July 1 or after, which is $25.00.

We have canceled the August 15 Saturday class, the September 28 Bed Turning event, and the October 10 Saturday class.  

We are getting in touch with our scheduled speakers for October and November to determine if they are available for ZOOM presentations, depending upon how our September trial presentation goes. We will keep you informed about the October and November plans, but these meetings also will not be in-person.

Please know that we have labored over these decisions as we seek to serve the Guild in the best way possible. We appreciate your understanding and encourage your ideas and input as we work together--while socially distancing-- through these times.  



From Lisa: I listened to a speaker recently who encouraged people to use this difficult situation as a time to become “better for it.” All the changes that these restrictions have brought our way can allow us the opportunity to examine what is truly important. Hopefully we can use this pandemic as a time to strengthen relationships in new ways, to revisit important priorities, and to create a new normal for our guild that promotes and preserves the art of quilting with a renewed vision.