EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska -- A reminiscent Senior Airman Karen Grinder imagines her 5-year-old-self learning how to hand stitch. In her grandmother’s eyes, a child was too young to use the sewing machine, so she would trace a 1/4 inch seam allowance and let Grinder stitch them together.
“If it wasn’t even, straight or small enough stitches, she would undo it all and I would have to re-stitch it,” said Grinder.
This sparked a passion for quilting in Grinder that has continued on for 15 years. The 354th Contracting Squadron contracting administrator said she remembers the first project they worked on together, a quilt for her parents anniversary.
“We started the project two years before their anniversary,” said Grinder. “When I was 16, my first nephew was about to be born. I decided to make him a quilt on my own, and my sister thought it was amazing. Now I have to make every niece and nephew a quilt; it’s tradition that everyone gets a ‘Tía Karen’ quilt.”
Grinder jokes and says she is addicted to quilting, but also believes it is a healthy addiction to have.
“I thank God for letting me have this wonderful hobby and feel like it is a healthy coping mechanism for me,” said Grinder. “Alaska’s environment can be tough, so I quilt and I run to stay occupied.”
Quilting is not just about having something to do, Grinder said it’s also about helping people.
“I encounter so many people that are going through different things,” said Grinder. “Whether it be a child in the hospital with cancer, a foster child taken away from their parents, someone down on their luck or a widowed 90-year old man; I think everyone should have quilt.”
Airman 1st Class Cassandra Whitman, a 354th Fighter Wing photojournalist, has been an apprentice of Grinder’s for about a month.
“She quilts every day, and has multiple projects going at once,” said Whitman. “It takes a little bit to get used to her methods, but it’s also an amazing experience to help. She makes so many quilts, and she puts so much love and time into each one.”
Aside from her personal projects and teaching a few classes, Grinder is an active member of the Fairbanks Quilts of Valor group and has made several quilts for organizations throughout base.
“Quilts of Valor is an official organization across the U.S.,” said Grinder. “They have specific criteria that each quilt need to fulfill to be considered an authentic Quilts of Valor quilt.”
Grinder said this organization takes the finished quilts and presents them to veterans, at funeral services for military personnel, retirements and to deployed personnel coming home from war. They also partner with Honor Flights to present quilts to World War II veterans to thank them for their service.
“I make quilt tops for the group,” said Grinder. “I will use my own fabric, or they sometimes give me projects, provide fabric, and I make the quilt tops on my own time and give them back when they are done. They take the tops and send them to others who donate their time to finish up the quilts when I am done.”
Quilting has a long history, but Grinder believes it is a dying art.
“It takes time,” she said smiling. “How do you show someone you care for them, that they are important, they matter, they are worth something? For me, its spending hours working on a quilt made specifically for them, which I think means a lot. It’s me saying, ‘Look, I spent this time on you because you mean something whether I know you personally or not. You’re a human being and you matter.’”
Whether she is donating her time on a quilt, making a specific quilt by request, or just piecing one together for fun, Grinder said she will always continue quilting.
“She’s got heart,” said Whitman. “She does what she does because she cares for people. She invests her own time on a craft that speaks volumes about who she is as a person. It’s so fun being a part of the time she invests into other people’s lives while doing something she loves.”
Grinder said regardless of whether or not people buy her quilts, she will continue working on her skills for another 15 years or more.
“I remember at basic training they told me I was color blind,” Grinder said smiling. “I told them that’s not possible, because I’m a quilter. They looked at me like I was crazy but it’s something I’ll never forget.”