b'QUILTS FOR SURVIVORSreached those 18 quilts, and then people were just volunteeringBoard of Directors, she has also from all overit was just phenomenal. employed her children to help manage the non-profit. When Gniers deadline for blocks passed in the fall of 2021, a woman named Joyce from Norway asked for an extension. ThatsGnier has received when she decided to continue the project indefinitely. several accolades for her work, including This was bigger than anything I had anticipated, said Gnier.being named one Survivors were starting to hear about what we were doing of 2024s Top 25 we started taking peoples names. When people started helpingWomen of Influence, with supplies and money to help with the shipping, it just kindthe Mastercard Game of snowballed. Changer Award and Juggling the project, her job and her family, Gnier dedicateda Meritorious Service Wednesdays and Saturdays to communal quilting out of her home.Decoration from the Local quilters also joined in to help. Governor General of Canada. She has also taken There were bins and boxes of donationsthere were peopleon the role of vice president ironing [fabric] in the kitchen and people were cutting on theof the Board of Directors for the counters and sewing, said Gnier. My son remembers there wasCanadian Quilters Association nowhere to sit and eatyou had to sit on the floor. (CQA), where shes both theVanessaGnier is a spiritually youngest and the only Indigenousgrounded Cree woman who strongly believes in her ancestral values, Soon, the need for quilts required her to leave her job as amember. For the June 2024 CQAwhich are the foundation to her bookkeeper. Having a business degree, I knew that we couldntexposition in Edmonton, Gnierstarting Quilts for Survivors.continue the way that we were going; something had to change,has made a call-out for a thousandSource: Vanessa Gnier.said Gnier. 12.5-by-12.5-inch quilt blocks.Her boss was supportive, and before long, Gnier had started aShe has asked that sewers not use federally registered non-profit, leasing a space above her old work.school-related designs because it could trigger painful memories for Two years in, Quilts for Survivors outgrew that space and moved toSurvivors, and to avoid fabrics with drug paraphernalia, swears or where it is now: a bungalow in Timmins. gang symbols. Once incorporated, Gnier applied for grants to get professionalThat comes directly from Survivorsthey dont want that in their equipment and develop a website. Along with an all-Indigenousquilts because it could be traumatizing, explained Gnier.IGNITE YOUR PASSION,Becoming a UBC millwright means joining a network of hundreds of thousands of highly skilled problem solvers working in MASTER YOUR CRAFT,industries across North Americaand getting access to training and connections that position you for career success.AND BUILD YOUR LEGACY! UBC Millwrights and The Millwright Regional CouncilCanada (MRC) are committed to supporting our communities and delivering Join us in shaping a brighter tomorrow.apprenticeship training programs across Canada that provide Become a Millwright Apprentice Today meaningful millwright career opportunities in the skilled trades.Learn more at ubcmillwrights.ca We are committed to opportunities that strengthen Indigenous prosperity and Millwright Regional CouncilCanadarepresentation within our membership. info@ubcmillwrights.caOntario Native Womens Association31'