Hues in the pews: Jean Stone’s myriad colorful quilts fill Odell church sanctuary today

Dec. 6-7, it is the pews that vibrate with color as Jean Stone’s quilt collection (or part of it) fills the room.

“This is my therapy,” said Stone, who creates quilts of all shapes, sizes and styles, both hand- and machine-quilted (“Sometimes I get lazy,” she jokes) and annually donates a raffle quilt to raise funds for the church bazaar.

This is the second year she has brought her creations to exhibit at the sanctuary during the bazaar. They’ll be boxed up by Saturday night though, before Sunday services.

The community is invited to get a close-up look at the panorama of fabric, all created in the past 20 years by Stone, who has both sewn or quilted and attended Wy’east all her life.

“It’s been my home church since I was born. It’s been through a lot of changes, but it’s my home church,” said Stone, who has farmed pears on Ehrck Hill Road her whole life, and still does, in the footsteps of her parents, the late Floyd and Lucille Steifel.

The bazaar is in the basement of the church, and the sanctuary is easily accessible via an interior ramp. There, you can see quilts ranging from traditional styles to Stone’s cloth portrait of her belated and beloved dog, Maggy, who served as a therapy dog at Providence Hood River Memorial for many years.

The bazaar also features towels, potholders and table runners, the kind of items she has created in recent years more than quilts. Stone’s quilts are mainstays at local quilting shows, including the County Fair, each year, and she has given away far more than she keeps, to people in need through her church and Providence.

“It gives me such great pleasure knowing they are helping people keep warm,” she said.