ShawneeDispatch.com

In a hushed room, six women bend over their work in silent concentration.

The women chat now and then, but they spend most of their time intent upon their work - not because what they are doing is so difficult, rather because it is so meaningful. As they piece together colorful quilts, they think of the children for whom the quilts are intended; as they tie a knot on the block of each quilt square, they say a prayer for that child.

"Every time they tie a knot, they say a prayer," Linda Mooney said of the group, known as the Prayer Quilt Ministry at Shawnee United Methodist Church. "So that's a lot of prayers that go into these pieces of quilted comfort."

The group, which also included Goldie Belt, Mary Ann Gardner, Betty McCreight, Laurie Moyer and Betty Runyan, met Dec. 20 to sew for their next donation of quilts, each a physical expression of the prayers that go into it. The group decided when they formed that they would create quilts specifically for children.

"Our mission is to bring comfort to someone having a tough time," Mooney said. "Every quilt delivered is going to a child that is facing a large disruption in their life."

The group began meeting in September with the help of Mooney. Last winter, the church had begun a Prayer Shawl Ministry, in which knitters create shawls for church members who would need them.

Mooney explained she was not a successful knitter herself, but she did know how to quilt.

"When I heard of the existence of a prayer quilt ministry nationally, I started talking to people and they loved the idea behind it," Mooney said.

Belt said she was quick to join the group because she knew Mooney's reputation for creating quilts.

"The reason I was really interested was because of Linda, because she always made a quilt for the garage sale in the fall, and they are just absolutely beautiful," Belt said.

Peggy Harris and Lillian Smith are two other regulars at the group's meetings, which take place the first and third Thursdays of the month. Two members, Mary Pat Thomas and Shelley Wollf, have full-time jobs, so they sew when they can at home. Another member, Susan Osborn, had a stroke and only has use of one side of her body.

"She will do whatever she can; she will figure out a way to do it," Mooney said.

Others didn't let a lack of quilting or sewing experience keep them from the group.

"Mary Ann has never quilted before, and she just took off running," Mooney said. "Every time she comes in, she has something new for us."

The women pool their funds to buy their own supplies and materials, though stockpiles of old materials mean they don't always have to buy more cloth.

"Some of us have sewn for a really long time, and it's time to recycle, so we reduce our stashes," Mooney said. ": It's fun to get creative with the fabric you have."

Each quilt is marked with a patch that explains its purpose, letting the future owner know that "each knot represents a prayer that was said for you."

The first six quilts the group produced were donated to the Shawnee Fire Department to carry in their trucks, and the batch they are currently working on will be donated to foster families in the area.

In the future, Mooney said the group is considering donations to Children's Mercy Hospital and Sunflower House.