Trip Around the World: The Story of a Donated Quilt
February is Black History Month. It’s a month we learn about the history of as wells as the contributions made to America by black Americans. One part of the history has to do with the role that Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have served in educating black Americans.
Prior to the Civil War, there was no structured higher education system for black students. Public policy and certain statutory provisions prohibited the education of blacks in various parts of the nation. HBCUs were established to serve the educational needs of black Americans. Prior to the time of their establishment, and for many years afterwards, blacks were generally denied admission to traditionally white institutions. As a result, HBCUs became the principle means for providing post secondary education to black Americans. Although these institutions were called “universities” or “institutes” from their founding, a major part of their mission in the early years was to provide elementary and secondary schooling for students who had no previous education. It was not until the early 1900s that HBCUs began to offer courses and programs at the post secondary level.
It made my heart feel happy.
In 2009, I donated a quilt that I made to the Tom Joyner Foundation. It was auctioned to raise money for HBCUs. Here are pictures of the quilt. This is a King sized quilt made with hundreds of pieces of fabrics. It is based on the Trip Around the World pattern. I used several Hoffman fabrics in the quilt. The borders are a purple moda marble and an earlier Kaffe Fassett fabric. The backing fabric is a yellow and grey print. I loved making this quilt. It is truly one of a kind. The money raised from the auction was used to help provide scholarships. It made my heart feel happy.
