We are currently accepting nominations for outstanding senior volunteers in Montrose and Delta counties for our 2023 Volunteer of the Year Award. 

So many local organizations rely on the selfless generosity of volunteers. And since seniors make up the bulk of our community’s volunteers, we want to recognize them at our Montrose-Delta BeaconFest Boomer & Senior Fair on Thursday, September 14. 

Do you know an outstanding volunteer living in Montrose or Delta? Click here for more information on how to nominate them. (Mesa County volunteer nominations are accepted before our Grand Junction senior fair in the spring.)

SPEAKING OF VOLUNTEERS

I grew up in Fruita, but until a few years ago, I had no idea that the famous Fruita Thrift Shop was run entirely by volunteers. Not only have volunteers been integral to the growth of this organization, but it’s because of their dedication and community donations that many other Grand Valley nonprofits benefit as well. Read more about how your donations to the Fruita Thrift Shop come full circle in this month’s cover story.

BACK TO BEACONFEST

We’re gearing up for a great show at the Montrose Pavilion with exciting entertainment, educational seminars, prize giveaways and more! Learn more about what’s in store. This show sells out every year, so reserve a booth today by calling 970-243-8829.

5,416 HEALING HEARTS

It’s always a delight when I serendipitously run into a reader I’ve talked to but never met. I was taking photos at the Fruita Thrift Shop when I ran into Debbie Wolfe, a local quilter whose Healing Hearts quilt was featured in the May issue of the BEACON. 

The article stated that the queen-size quilt, which Wolfe created to honor the lives that were lost to COVID-19, has more than 5,264 hand-sewn hearts. But she informed me that the final number was updated to 5,416 hearts! 

No doubt this quilt was quite the labor of love, as each individual heart is barely over an inch tall/wide. It took her two years to complete it. She said a friend suggested the name “Healing Hearts” because Wolfe’s heart was hurting from those who died from COVID-19, and “for me, hand stitching is relaxing and heals my soul.”

In case you missed this incredible story, you can read it at the link below:

Healing hearts 5,000 at a time

Local quilter completes memorial to Coloradans who died of COVID Read More »