Sew Welcome.
The warmth of a quilt draped over your shoulders. A gift from a stranger who took the time to sew it – especially for you. The realization that somebody cares. These are the feelings that we wish to evoke with every Bienvenidos quilt.
Bienvenidos Quilts sews, gathers and sends homemade quilts to refugees and migrants, especially at our southern border.
It all began with a photo. Actually, there were many photos. In March 2021, pictures of youngsters huddled on cement floors, grasping aluminum emergency blankets tight around their shoulders, began circulating in media outlets. These immigrant and refugee children and teens were in US holding facilities at our southern border. They looked cold, lost and forgotten.
That’s when we decided to take action – to do one thing: Wrap those kids in comforting quilts.
We began with a small stack of quilts, made in Portland, Oregon. Since then, around 570 quilts, handmade by people across the country, have been given to people emigrating to the US, especially at our southern border.
“Bienvenidos” is the Spanish word for “welcome.” Each quilt sends a message to a child or family at the border: You are welcome, honored and loved.