For another holiday season, the Prairie Hearts Quilters Guild has wrapped up its annual Christmas placemat campaign, delivering hundreds of handmade pieces to seniors and hospital patients across Moose Jaw and surrounding communities.
In total, 518 placemats were completed during the 2025 campaign, with 506 distributed in time for Christmas meals and 12 held back to start the 2026 season. While the final count fell just short of last year’s record-setting total of 525, the effort again reached care homes, hospitals, and Meals on Wheels recipients who might otherwise spend Christmas Day in near isolation.
Placemat co-ordinator Linda Owens said the project is a year-round effort involving dozens of volunteer quilters.
“The girls make the placemats during the course of the year and hand them in to me. They all have a card on them that says, ‘This is a gift from the Prairie Hearts Quilters Guild,’” Owens said.
Once collected, Owens prepares each placemat for delivery, paying close attention to safety and presentation and ensuring there are no pins or sewing needles accidentally left behind — a detail informed by her background as a retired nurse.
The placemats are then rolled, tagged, and packed into large Christmas bags before being delivered to their destinations. This year’s distribution included Meals on Wheels clients in Moose Jaw, Assiniboia, and Coronach, along with care homes in Assiniboia, Rockglen, Lafleche, Gravelbourg, Coronach, and Central Butte.
In Moose Jaw, 106 placemats were delivered to the Special Care Home (formerly Extendicare). Recipients included a longstanding guild member now residing at the home. A further 57 placemats were delivered to Crescent Park Villa and 65 to patients at the Dr. F.H. Wigmore Regional Hospital, ensuring those admitted over the holidays could enjoy Christmas dinner with a festive touch.
The program has been running for roughly a decade and remains one of the guild’s most visible outreach initiatives. While most of the placemats — about 90 per cent — were made by members in Moose Jaw, Owens said the campaign also benefited from support beyond city limits.
“I did want to expressly thank the guild members and quilters from Regina and surrounding communities who have donated,” she said.
Over the years, the guild has occasionally received feedback from recipients and their families, although Owens isn’t aware of any recent feedback as the guild doesn’t meet until Jan. 8.
“In the past, we have received thank-you letters from some of the seniors, and sometimes they’re from patients who were in the hospital on Christmas Day and got a placemat. Sometimes it’s from the families,” she said. “We did have a card from a resident at Providence Place once who said it was the only Christmas gift she got.”
The Prairie Hearts Quilters Guild also supports the community through other outreach projects, including pillowcases for pediatric patients and quilts for dialysis and chemotherapy patients. Members meet regularly throughout the year at Vanier Collegiate after regular school hours to quilt, learn new techniques, and prepare items for donation.
To learn more, visit PrairieHeartsQuilters.com, follow “Moose Jaw Prairie Hearts Quilters Guild” on Facebook, or email PrairieHeartsQuilters@yahoo.ca.
Aaron Walker
Reporter
Moose Jaw Express
