DADE CITY – As fears of Y2K computer crashes spread leading up to the turn of the century, Kathleen Sullivan sought to connect quilters worldwide.
Sullivan, an avid quilter and officer with the Tampa Police Department, thought it would be fun to create a project with a Y2K theme. She encouraged other quilters online to exchange 25 2.5-inch fabric squares with one another. The idea was to incorporate 2,000 squares into each quilt in honor of the millennium.
Sullivan received 250 envelopes filled with fabric blocks from throughout the United States, Canada and 27 other countries. Many envelopes included letters sharing personal stories about the senders’ lives and families.
After Sullivan passed away in 2022, her family donated the fabric squares and letters to the East Pasco Quilt Guild.
Members of the guild incorporated these squares and letters into 10 quilts of different sizes for the “Y2K Quilt Collection Exhibit,” currently on display at The Bike Spoke. The project took about a year and a half to complete.
“We wanted to see Kathleen’s vision through,” \member Judy Croucher said.
Each set of fabric squares came with a “siggie” block that included the sender’s name and hometown.
“We have kept track of each block so it is kind of like the world came to Dade City,” President Rozanne Ritter said. “This is an opportunity for our community to see what people had sent from around the world.”
Some quilts in the collection are designated as “scavenger hunt quilts,” encouraging visitors – especially children – to search for specific things within the designs.
“It’s a fun way for people to spend more time exploring the details,” Ritter said.
Since the Dade City Heritage Museum is being renovated, the exhibit will be displayed through Dec. 20 at The Bike Spoke, 37800 Church Ave., Dade City. The shop is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
The guild will also display the quilts at Dade City events, such as Church Street Christmas, Kumquat Festival and Farm Festival & Quilt Show.
Email for details about the quilts and the guild.
