Mattie Brown shows off one of the 95 quilts that she handmade to be donated to residents of Marshall Manor on Thursday.

Mattie Brown, a 94-year-old member of St. John’s Divine Baptist Church of Kildare, has spent her free time sewing lap quilts for the last six years. Brown has successfully created over 500 quilts, all of which have been donated to nursing homes in the East Texas area.

On Thursday, a group of volunteers from St. John’s traveled to Marshall Manor to donate 95 of those quilts to the home’s residents.

“It really keeps me busy, and gives me something to do throughout the year; it’s pretty much what I do all the time,” Brown said.

Church member Bobbie Harper, Brown’s daughter, said that the event was started almost six years ago as a mission for the church.

“I thought it would be a good idea to make the lap quilts as a mission, but none of the woman at church except for momma knew how to sew,” Harper said.

Brown explained that sewing has always been a hobby of hers, something she learned from her mother and has passed down to her own daughter.

“I just like to sew, and since I was the only one who knew how to do it, I started making the quilts,” Brown said.

Volunteers from the church met at the nursing home Thursday morning to distribute quilts. Brown and Harper were joined by Clara Henley, Ruben Henley, Ella Coleman and Sharon Love, all to assist in distributing the donated items.

Harper said that he husband, William Harper, was also a big help in assisting in getting the project going and transporting the group and the quilts to the nursing home.

“It’s just incredible, we really want to thank them for coming to donate these quilts,” said Administrator Ross Bradfield, “They already love them so much.”

Since the project began, each year volunteers from the church travel to a different nursing home in the area to drop off the handmade lap quilts for residents to enjoy.

Harper said that the church’s pastor, Pastor Eddie Murray, is actually a native of Marshall, one reason the group felt called to donate the quilts in the city this year.

With last year’s donation put on hold due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the group had over 200 handmade quilts ready to be donated during this holiday season.

“All of the residents everywhere we go, they are always so grateful and welcoming when we come,” Harper said, “We are going to keep doing this for as long as we can.”