In Memory of Norma

Today we held a memorial celebration for the life of Norma Santhoff, one of the original members of the Compton Cares Team and a tireless believer in the power of prayer combined with practical action. Norma is remembered by her 5 children and many grandchildren, by her neighbors in the condo, by the staff and board of Cornerstone early childhood center which she founded, by the literally thousands of children whose lives are better for her work, by members past and present of Compton Heights whom she taught in Sunday School, led in youth groups, shared with in Reading Circle and study groups and prayer groups. She was an elder, a past moderator of the congregation. She was the person who called you in the middle of an ice storm and found you a warm bedroom when she learned your power was going to be out for days. She took a sabbatical from Sunday school to observe the caring community that gathered in a fast food restaurant near her home. She was not afraid of the people who knock on your door and want to witness to you; she invited them in and studied the Bible with them for years, with the understanding that neither was going to convert the other. She brought rocks from the spot she visited on vacation because she knew you collected rocks and she wanted to thank you for taking her to the airport. Within days after receiving a devastating diagnosis, she was back calling people in the congregation as well as her friends to check on their various surgeries and recoveries. She was at home in the InterRacial Dialogue and representing Compton at the Pride Fest booth, as in this picture taken a year ago. Three benches in the garden outside Compton were provided by Norma, because she wanted people passing by or waiting for the bus to have a place to sit and rest and enjoy the view. Norma loved babies, children, young couples, single people, old people, dogs, neighbors, strangers, her family, friends, flowers, and challenges. She not only believed in prayer, she was a living prayer. We have lost a treasured friend and heaven has gained a saint.

We Dedicate the Renovations and Thank Donors

June 14, 2008--We had a perfect day to dedicate the Compton Cares project and thank everyone who has supported the project so far. After a short worship service in the sanctuary, about 50 members and Friends of Compton processed outside to the new plaza and ramp for a litany of dedication. Then we all went back inside for refreshments and conversation. This isn't the end of the project, of course. We still have to raise about $13,000 and collect all of the commitments that have been made to date. But more important, we need to discern what the next phase in this inclusive ministry will be.

Below I am posting the complete list of donors and supporters we thanked on Saturday. It's a long list, but it comprises the record. Of course we welcome additional contributions of any kind, ranging from spare change and soda cans to checks of all amounts. Please continue using GoodSearch, GoodShop and eScrip as a way to support Compton Cares in the future. I will continue to update the financial progress in the right column, but for now, there won't be any new posts about the project unless we undertake something new. Which we might.

Gifts to Compton Cares Campaign

Thanks to the faith, generosity and commitment of many members and friends of Compton Heights Christian Church, we have received monetary gifts and pledges of $148,108.23 as of June 14, 2008. Our heartfelt thanks and gratitude to the following people, some known to us and some not:

Everyone who has brought aluminum cans, cell phones or ink cartridges for recycling, or who has brought coins to the spare change bank.
Everyone who has used GoodSearch, eScrip, or GoodShop, or donated cabinets, countertops and appliances for the kitchenette.
Everyone who volunteered time and donated items for the Gypsy Caravan.
Everyone who has volunteered time meeting with the architects and contractors, and those who helped write and revise various loan applications, grant applications, or tended other financial details.
The Bridgeton Fund committee for its generous grant.
Everyone who has shared the vision and prayed for this project.

And we also recognize the following donors of time, talent, and/or treasure, some of whom made their gifts in memory of or in honor of loved ones:

Anonymous
Arlene Arbogast
Mrs. A.T. Akin, Jr.
Sue Bardelmeier in memory of Paul Bardelmeier, for his love of Compton Heights CC.
Vaughn Bardelmeier in memory of Paul Bardelmeier
Lisa Bast
Jon Berquist & Sally Willis-Watkins
Anna Mae Bertram in memory of Mr. and Mrs. R.T. Blackwell
Jill & Jim Boaz in memory of Helen and Harold Boaz
Ben Bohren
Carol Boss and Matthew Henderson
Brenda Brinkmann
Martha A. Cain in honor of Jacque Foster and Dave Boger
Robert D. and Lois S. Chambless in honor of Jacque Foster and Dave Boger and in honor of Norm and Judi Linville
Jim & Sharon Clayton in memory of Glennon Sack and Hazel Sack Carlisle and in memory of Virgil and Blanche Clayton
Adele Coble
Mary Davis
Ransom and Pat Davis
Clarence J. Diedriech
Cindy Diggs
Roger Elder in memory of Ralph N. Elder
Thelma Elder in memory of Ralph N. Elder
Jacque Foster and Dave Boger in memory of Ozzie Cain and Vernon Boger and in honor of Martha Cain and Nancy Boger
Lynda Gamlin in memory of Lee and Herbie Sutton
Rufus K. Gann, Jr.
Beth Gellman
Cletus and Rona Glasener in memory of Cletus, Sr. and Pauline Glasener
Reed Glasener in memory of Cletus, Sr. and Pauline Glasener
Darla Glynn
Howard and Darlene Goodrich in honor of the Rev. Jacque Foster
Betty and Red Graham in memory of Joe Spitler, Lee Sutton, and Herb Sutton
Tim and Rhonda Graham in honor of Red and Betty Graham
Bob from Happy Friday
Madeline Haraway
Matt Myers & Doug Harrison in honor of Norm and Judi Linville
Carolyn & Jon Hicks in memory of Hazel Carlisle
Darrell, Marty & Sarah Hughes in memory of Clifford and Edna Hogshead
Bonnie Jorgenson & Chris Correia
Lillian Kaley in memory of Fred Kaley
Cora Katzen in memory of Frances French
Rosemary Kemper in memory of Carl Kemper
Bill Kleiner
Darren & Kathie Kreuger
Duane T. Kreuger
Larry & Jan Kreuger
Ruth V. Kreuger in honor of your wonderful church
Larry and Mary Kuhn in memory of Millie Kuhn
Dennis Landon and Lana Hartman Landon
Leslie Latham
April J. Lewton
Norm and Judi Linville in honor of Compton Rising
Ronnie London
Eva Maldonado
Mr. Merry Maney
Ruby Manning and Joan Heintz
Arlanda McCelleary and her grandfather
Marsha McGuire
Shannon McGuire and Matt Walton
Kathy Mead in memory of Virgil Mead and Mary Mead; Walter C. Tarde, Sr. and Lillian Tarde; and Carol V. Mead
Lewis & Dolores Mead in memory of Carol Tarde Mead
Ron and Carol Mead in memory of Carol V. Mead
Timothy Murphy
Susan & Roland Petri in memory of Walter Tarde, Sr., Lillian Tarde,
and Carol Mead
Richard Reed
Bryan and Sarah Richardson
Melissa Roth
Norma Santhoff
The Santhoff Family in honor of Norma Santhoff
Mary E. Schumacher in memory of her sister-in-law, Donna; and in honor of her nephew, Donovan Goodwin
David & Jennie Shirey in honor of Compton Heights’ Faithful Witness
in the City
Millie Slack in memory of George Slack
Sarah Spann
Rosemary Spitler in memory of Joe Spitler
Vijaya Vasudevan & John Srinivasan
Patrice Stricker in memory of George & Pat Fugel, and John Fugel
Walt & Audrey Tarde in memory of Mr. and Mrs. W.C. Tarde, Sr., Carol V. Mead, and Harold & Helen Rudy
Karen Tye and Brent Dodge
Liz Vollmar in memory of Carol Mead and in honor of Lew Mead, Kathy Mead and Madeline Haraway
Barbara & Hugh Wilson
Guang Wu

Update: 6/22/08 The donor list has been updated to reflect a new memorial gift.

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the following talents and skills of professionals for the Compton Cares Accessibility Project:

We appreciate the creative vision of Jeffrey Mugg of St. Louis Design Alliance, whose plan for our project embodied his belief that a building should treat those with varying abilities the same.

We are grateful for the construction supervision by Zach Hamilton and the counsel of Rhonda McDougal of Church Extension during the loan application process.

We thank Beth Gellman for her consultation on landscape design for the planters and our adjoining meditation garden.

We appreciate the offer of Julia Krovicka to design a new sign that will reflect our congregation’s commitment to ministry in the city.

We thank our ministry partners in Isaiah 58, who endured dust, noise and delays while plumbing was being re-arranged over their very heads during part of the construction process.

We also acknowledge the work of our Compton Cares Team volunteers:

Dave Boger was invaluable as liaison for construction
Kathy Mead handled the loan and legal stuff
Jan Kreuger kept the records of pledges and gifts.
Norm Linville shared his experience with working with an architect on a church project.
Shannon McGuire provided page design expertise and tended to many details.
Judi Linville started a blog to chronicle our progress.
Marsha McGuire helped us stay organized and on task.
Norma Santhoff led us in learning to say Yes to the vision.
Jacque Foster, our pastor, was and is awesome.

Thank you, all!

Dedication will be on June 14

Our gardens are growing, and providing respite in the shade for people waiting for a bus, walking down Grand, or coming to the food pantry or other services of Isaiah 58 ministries in our building.

On Saturday, June 14, we will have a dedication service to celebrate the completion of the Compton Cares Accessibility renovations. The program begins at 11 a.m. and will be followed by light refreshments and a chance to visit. Donors to the capital campaign will be recognized on an honor roll, which will appear here after the service. We chose a Saturday for this service so that Friends of Compton from other congregations can join us. Let's all hope for weather as lovely as it was last Sunday morning when these photos were taken!

Also on Sunday, I took new photos for the header and sidebar of this blog, since the construc- tion and reno- vations are complete. Our financial campaign is nearing the finish line, too. Follow our progress in the sidebar to the right.

Gypsy Caravan Nets Compton Cares over $1000

Our day at Gypsy Caravan started ominously: we arrived on the grounds at 6:30 a.m. to find the canopy we had set up the night before collapsed, and some of our boxes containing sales items soaked through when our tarps were dislodged by the wind and rain that accompanied a fierce lightning storm about 4 a.m. At first, four of us just held up the four corners and bailed water, while we called for reinforcements from others. Help arrived when Darrell showed up with clamps and two-by-fours, and Liz arrived with towels, a plastic bin, and Pepsi. I went off in a corner and quietly sang the words to the plains Indian sun song. Once the canopy was stable, Kathy, Marsha, Norm and I were able to dry off and arrange some of our 153 items that Compton members donated for the sale. We opened for business at 9 a.m.--a couple of hours late--and an hour later the rain stopped. By 2:30 p.m., the sun was almost out and the crowds were busy going through some 330 different vendors' wares in two parking lots at the University.

Some of our makeshift tent repairs can be seen here, as Dave bargains with a wary buyer, Leslie guards the cash box and Norm ponders the scene. Behind our booth was a ditch full of rainwater and just an hour earlier, two geese and their 7 goslings floated by on their afternoon swim. In the foreground are two of the 8 quilts and quilt tops... we gave up hanging them from lines under the eaves of the canopy after it became so unstable.

These photos were taken about 3 p.m. When the sale ended at 5 p.m., we had only a few boxes of unsold items to pack up, and the tent to take down and the tables to stow in the Hughes' van and ours. We had sold 7 of Mary's 8 quilts/quilt tops and--BREAKING NEWS--just tonight we sold the last remaining quilt, the yellow/floral block one, to a Friend of Compton and quilt collector who e-mailed us from Florida saying his check would be in tomorrow's mail. So tonight, our net profit from this fundraiser for Compton Cares is $1,018. A big THANK YOU to everyone who donated, helped price and set up, worked the booth and prayed for the success of this project. Thanks, too, to an old Indian dance master in Oklahoma who taught me a "sun song" many years ago.

Ready for Gypsy Caravan

Well, we are ready for Gypsy Caravan tomorrow. The donations for our sale kept pouring in and after I tallied all of the price stickers we put on items, we have a total asking price for our items of over $2,300! And to think Mary started it all with 8 quilts! Let's all pray for decent weather (heavy thunderstorms are in the forecast) and for all of our items to sell. Four of us will be there at 6:30 in the morning to be ready for the early bird shoppers. If I have a chance, I'll have pictures and results to post tomorrow night. Happy holidays, everyone.

This morning in worship we had a wonderful time rejoicing as Lana was able to enter her own church for the first time in years, using her wheel chair for ease of access. We had many visitors, including Madeline's family, plus Robbie home from college, and Norma's son and fiancee as well. A great day all around, and finally a way to welcome everyone. Thanks to everyone who has supported this project this far. We have just a little bit farther to go and then we won't need this blog any more!

Gypsy Caravan Quilts and Tops

In addition to the hand quilted quilts that Mary Schumacher donated to Compton Cares, she also gave four interesting tops that are not finished.
This basket quilt was made by Mary's grandmother, Mary Ellen Gastineau, in the late 1950s or early '60s. Mrs. Gastineau died in 1980. Many of the fabrics appear to be feed sacks and '30s prints. The six-inch blocks are set on point and the top measures 70" by 87". There is sun damage on the lower rows and one edge is frayed.


This butterfly charm quilt, also with some '30s prints, was made by Mary's aunt Ora E. McFadden, who was a daughter of Mrs. Gastineau. The blocks are 7 inches, set on point, hand pieced and appliqued with buttonhole embroidery stitch. There is slight yellowing of the muslin fabric along one edge.



A top made of album blocks is attributed by Mary to Cora Ethel Hughes Johnson, her daughter Katherine McDonald and Katherine's sister-in-law Alice Hull. The women lived on Russell Avenue in the Shaw Neighborhood and died in the 1970s. The blocks are not signed. They measure 11-1/2 inches and the top is 67" by 86".

Measuring 61" by 83", this nine- patch top with 2-1/2" sashing has a "use up the scraps" feel and may have been made in the '60s not long before Mrs. Johnson's death in 1971. It is somewhat unusual in its use of plaid fabric in many blocks. Mary inherited it after Katherine McDonald died in 1978.

In addition to the quilts, our booth will feature Avon ruby glass, various collectibles, stained glass, 33 lp records, a globe of the moon and a handmade chocolate safe box, among other tantalizing items. For more information about Gypsy Caravan, click on the name to go to the event web site. We hope to see you there: we are in space C-94.

Quilts for Gypsy Caravan

One of the most exciting gifts to Compton Cares is a collection of four quilts and four pieced quilt tops donated by Mary Schumacher. These will be offered for sale at the Gypsy Caravan, the antique, craft and flea market of St. Louis, on Monday, May 26 at the UM-St. Louis campus. Above left is a rose applique quilt made especially for Mary by her neighbor, Cora Ethel Hughes Johnson, who lived on Russell Ave. and was a member of Compton Heights Baptist Church. Mary says it was made in the 1960s. It measures 69" inches wide by 83" long. The blocks are 17" with hand applique and French Knot embroidery. Quilting is 4 stitches per inch. Good condition.

This unusual version of a fan quilt was made by Cora Ethel Hughes Johnson, her daughter Katherine McDonald and Katherine's sister-in-law Alice Hull. Blocks are 7''. The quilt measures 68" by 82". Quilting is 8 stitches per inch. Very good condition. Some fabrics are 1930s but Mary thinks it was made in the late '50s or early '60s. Mrs. Johnson died in 1971.

A variation of the Orange Peel, this pink and green beauty was also made by Mrs. Johnson and her daughter Katherine and Alice Hull. Appliqued blocks alternate with print blocks measuring 10-1/2 inches. Quilt is 60" by 84". Hand quilted 4 stitches per inch. The muslin back has some slight staining from storage.


Alternating printed floral panels and yellow fabric brighten this 55" by 76" quilt made by Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. McDonald and Mrs. Hull. Quilting is 4 stitches per inch and some of the batting has shifted from wear and folding.

The next post (which will show up above this one) shows the four unquilted tops that Mary also contributed to Compton Cares.

For information about Gypsy Caravan, click on the name to go to the event web site.