Two years ago I was in the room when the Charlotte, NC Chapter of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF)presented Oprah the quilt they had commissioned me to make for her. I remain so grateful to my friend Justine Boyd for steering the commission my way. My friends affectionately call it the Oprah quilt. The official name of the quilt is Living My Best Life at College.
The challenge to include in the quilt all the schools affiliated with the UNCF resulted in a star quilt with each school having a star in the quilt. My friend Jackie Jackson Harvey did the embroidery for me, and my friend Maxine Moore did the machine quilting. I appliquéd Oprah’s name on the back of the quilt in the middle of a huge star bordered by angels.
My daughter India and I traveled to Charlotte, NC so that we could be in the room when Oprah got her quilt. Unfortunately due to Oprah’s tight schedule, (she flew in from the west coast and back before the event was even over) I was not able to get a picture with Oprah. (Sigh). I did speak with her briefly and she said she loved the quilt. I think it is a beautiful keepsake, and I was happy with the result. As an artist, that is the most important thing.
However, we enjoyed the fundraising event where all the ladies wore beautiful hats. They raised over $1 million dollars that day. It was a good day and one that India and I will never forget.
