advertisement

5-year-old Batavia girl is already quite the quilter

The recent Quilt and Textile Show in Batavia produced some amazing talent, one of whom was only 5 years old.

Nicole Magerkurth visited the quilt show two years ago and was so taken by the event that she wanted to make a quilt.

She got the opportunity when she was a student in Lisa Hillquist's kindergarten class at Hoover-Wood Elementary School.

“Each of the kids made four panels to include in their quilts and then parents came in to help with the sewing,” said Nicole's mom, Christina Magerkurth.

The young quilter got some sewing tips from her grandmothers, Susan Edwards and Sheila Magerkurth, both quilters.

Nicole even had a pretend quilt show at her home by hanging a sling across the fireplace and using clothes pins to hang pillows and blankets she had made.

“She had a little cash register set up and she charged me $2 to attend,” said Edwards.

Nicole was quick to point out that she didn't waste the profits.

“I put all the money in my piggy bank,” she said.

After attending this year's show, the Magerkurths are setting a goal for next year. They plan to submit a group of quilts made by their family members.

“I went to Prairie Shop Quilts and got a Christmas Doggie Quilt to make by myself,” said Nicole. “And I'm going to show that in the quilt show.”

Speaking of the quilt show, this year's winners were Leanne Hurley, who won the Viewers' Choice Award, and Jill Stolpested, who was awarded the Mayor's Choice.

Volunteers needed: It was great to see so many members of the community come out to help with the quilt show and the art show. Marie Krolikowski contacted me and told me that volunteers are still needed for the 2012 Batavia House Walk that takes place 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 30. Why not send an email to Marie at Mkroli4homes@aol.com and offer to volunteer at one of the five beautiful homes?

Freckles and flight: Who would have thought that Batavia would play a role in a multimillion dollar search?

Recently, researchers found what is thought to be cosmetic fragments that might have belonged to Amelia Earhart.

Researchers of The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery, looking for Earhart's plane on Nikumaroro Island in the western Pacific Ocean, discovered glass that appears to be associated with someone who had been a castaway on the island. Two bottles, both dating from the 1930s, were found.

The search team was able to reconstruct a jar that was similar in shape to Dr. Berry's Freckle Ointment, a product that was reportedly used by Earhart.

Laboratory analysis of remnants of the contents in a three-ounce bottle show a close match to Campana's Italian Balm, a lotion made here that was a popular cosmetic item in the 1930s. Amelia Earhart was known to use the lotion as a hand cream.

Supporting the community: Batavia has many in the community who have stepped to the front of the line when asked for support.

Some of the biggest donors are the restaurants on River Street. I was at O'Brien's Pub for lunch recently and there were very few people there. On the wall were Little League sponsorships and park district team sponsorships.

I thought about how many times I had seen O'Brien's Pub donating to the Holiday Toy drive, the Blue Knights fundraiser, the Lions Club and MainStreet fundraisers. They even donate 100 pounds of sloppy joes each year to feed the homeless.

Then I remembered how great El Taco Grande was years ago when they sponsored my son's Little League team. When the team went to the local World Series, members of the El Taco Grande family not only came to the game, they offered to host a taco party to celebrate.

These businesses support our community. We need to do all that we can as a community to support these businesses during the construction.

Ÿ Daily Herald columnist Sammi King is a lifelong resident of Batavia. Email her at king60510@aol.com.

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.