Washington Health System unveils quilts made from pandemic masks
Karen Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
The Martha Washington Quilters Guild created two quilt artworks to commemorate the COVID-19 pandemic and the efforts of Washington Health System workers throughout the pandemic. This one was unveiled at Washington Hospital on Tuesday. The other hangs at WHS Greene.
Karen Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Washington Health System employees Faye McVay, left, and Joyce Kalakewich, center, unveil a quilt work completed by Martha Washington Quilters Guild, after WHS President and CEO Brook Ward thanked health-care workers for their tireless efforts throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Karen Mansfield/Observer-Reporter
Martha Washington Quilters guild members, from left, Peggy Tush, Evelyn Lesniakowski, and Cheryl Walsh, and Washington Health System President and CEO Brook Ward at Tuesday’s unveiling of a quilt artwork the guild created in recognition of the COVID-19 pandemic
courtesy Washington Health System
A commemorative quilt completed by Martha Washington Quilters Guild was unveiled at WHS Greene last week. From left to right in from to fat frame quilt are phlebotomists Lacey Higgenbotham and Rachel Staggers, and lab technologist Carrie Puzella.
Face masks have become the defining symbol of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To recognize the contributions of Washington Health System health-care workers to keep the patients and the community safe throughout the pandemic, WHS enlisted the Martha Washington Quilters Guild to create quilts made from masks worn by WHS health-care workers.
The guild created two framed quilts, which recently were unveiled at WHS Greene and Washington Hospital, where they will be hung in the lobby area.
“When I think back about what we’ve lived through and what we’re going through, the one symbolic thing that continues to sort of represent this time period, in my opinion, is the wearing of masks,” said Brook Ward, WHS President and CEO. “We wanted to take an opportunity to thank the Washington Health System team members and our board members, medical staff, nurses, housekeepers, you name it, everybody including the volunteers, who help provide care for our community, help keep people safe, and care for people with COVID.”
About a dozen members of the guild took part in the initiative.
“We were so honored and so proud to be a part of this and do this for the hospital,” said Martha Washington Quilters Guild President Evelyn Lesniakowski.
The crazy quilt block pattern used to fashion together the masks shows that “when many pieces are joined together, we become one.”
Lesniakowski said the quilts will serve as a reminder of the historic time period.
“Thirty years from now, children who were born after the pandemic will look at (the quilts) and ask, ‘What happened?'” she said.
Working on the quilts was especially meaningful for Lesniakowski, whose husband, Richard, died from COVID-19 in December 2020.
A plaque beneath the quilt reads, “This beautiful piece of artwork was stitched together by the Martha Washington Quilters Guild to represent the abrupt change in our lives as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic that swept through our region beginning in March of 2020. These masks were worn by the Washington Health System team members who selflessly served the local community by caring for our family, our friends, and our neighbors. Let us never forget the months that turned into years of sacrifice by all of us, and may we continue to spotlight the dedication of our very own ‘Healthcare Heroes.'”
The COVID-19 death toll in the United States is approaching 1 million, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Washington County, 654 people have died from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. In Greene County, 101 coronavirus deaths have been recorded.