Wishing Everyone!

Making one Resolution this year, Quilt More and Eat Less.  Happy Quilting to all in 2012!

Sunday---Precious Promises

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.  Luke 2:14

Merry Christmas to All

News from Ami -- Little Quilts Keep On Giving

On Monday volunteers from the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) presented a check for $30,000 to Dr. Sylvie Garneau-Tsodikova at the Life Sciences Institute of the University of Michigan. Dr. Garneau-Tsodikova and her research team will be using the money raised predominantly through the sale of donated quilts to develop multifunctional drugs for Alzheimer's disease.

Pictured above (from left to right) are: Jacob L. Houghton, Todd J. Eckroat, Wenjing Chen, Keith D. Green, Rebecca A. Reed (kneeling), Joshua J. Bornstein, Dr. Sylvie Garneau-Tsodikova, Ami Simms, Pat Holly (kneeling), Sue Nickels, Debbie Chenail, and Ruth Langdon.

It is unusual for researchers and those who fund them to ever meet. AAQI volunteers have had this opportunity three times. It is an extremely rewarding experience.

We bring quilts to explain our mission of raising awareness and funding research through art. Dr Garneau-Tsodikova's grandmother and aunt have Alzheimer's. She is motivated by their struggles with AD to work towards a cure.

We also bring Priority: Alzheimer's Quilts to sell. They become tangible reminders of the hope we all share that some day there will be a cure for this horrible disease.



It was truly amazing how science and art came together as Dr. Garneau-Tsodikova explained the work of her research team to quilters Pat Holly and Sue Nickels using a quilt from the AAQI traveling exhibit ("Alzheimer's Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope") made by Mary Andrews. In the background are exhibit quilts by Mona Fallis and Gay Young Ousley.

For everyone who sews for the AAQI, I know you do so because you care deeply about finding a cure for Alzheimer's. Let me assure you that what you do matters. Every single stitch counts. Your art touches people in a most special way. Just look at the faces of the people below holding the quilts you made!

Together we CAN make a difference.

To everyone who supports the AAQI by making quilts, buying quilts, and through financial contributions to our nonprofit, please accept my personal and heartfelt thanks for the work you do to make the AAQI a reality.

Together we have raised more than $679,000 since the AAQI began in 2006. This is the 10th research project we have funded.

Thank you!

Ami Simms
Founder & Executive Director
Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative

Remembering the Season



Sunday---Precious Promises

The Lord of hosts offers strength.  I Samuel 1:3

Sunday---Precious Promises

The Lord send peace.  Judges 6:24

The Numbers Are In

The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) raised $62,000 during International Quilt Festival (IQF) in Houston, Texas. From November 2-6, 2011, volunteers sold 1,141 Priority: Alzheimer’s Quilts (mini quilts measuring 9" x 12" or less) breaking all previous sales records for the all-volunteer nonprofit organization.


Click here to see the quilts that sold in Houston.

This was the sixth year the AAQI was invited to display and sell Priority: Alzheimer's Quilts by IQF founder and director Karey Bresenhan. Brooke and John Flynn, from Billings, Montana, again sponsored the booth.

The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative awarded $115,000 in grants in 2011, funding research at the University of Michigan, the University of Pittsburgh, and Cornell University. AAQI grants are made possible in large part from income generated by selling made by its supporters. Nearly 9,000 Priority: Alzheimer's Quilts have been donated since the effort began.

The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative is a national, grassroots charity whose mission is to raise awareness and fund research. Alzheimer’s Illustrated: From Heartbreak to Hope, a nationally touring exhibit of quilts about Alzheimer's, and the Priority: Alzheimer’s Quilts project are two of its programs. The AAQI has raised more than $679,000 for Alzheimer’s research since January 2006. Ami Simms of Flint, Michigan is the founder and executive director of AAQI, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Her mother had Alzheimer’s.

YEA!!!  What a great year.  Keep those quilts and bids coming in 2012.  Happy Quilting!

Only Nine Hours to Go!!

Remember this little quilt?  I made it for the Alliance of American Quilts contest entitled "Alliances".  I created this little quilt "Stars Above Us" as my entry.  All entries, after the contest judging and a little traveling schedule, are then auctioned off on eBay with all proceeds going to the Alliance of American Quilts.  I support the great work of AAQ and their mission statement:

The Alliance for American Quilts (AAQ) is a nonprofit 501c3 organization established in 1993 whose mission is to document, preserve, and share our American quilt heritage by collecting the rich stories that historic and contemporary quilts, and their makers, tell about our nation's diverse peoples and their communities.
In support of this mission, the Alliance brings together quilt makers and designers, the quilt industry, quilt scholars and teachers, and quilt collectors to further the following goals:

•to promote the understanding of the quilt as an important American grassroots art form

•to make information about quilts available to a broad public

•to educate Americans about the importance of documenting quilts and quiltmakers so that their stories will not be lost

"Stars Above Us" and others are presently on eBay for auction, with only 9 hours to go.  Check it out and make a bid.  You could win a great quilt and support the work of a vital organization preserving history and the understanding of the American Quilt.  Happy Quilting!

Sunday---Precious Promises

The Lord sanctifies.  Exodus 31:13