Needlepoint Kneelers, aka, Altar Cushions for St. Matthew’s
Sometime in early 1990, Rev. Robert Paulen was inspired to have Needlepoint Kneelers, aka, altar cushions, made for our church.
After several women toured the needlepoint cushions at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church and at the National Cathedral, we researched and decided which biblical symbols to use on our cushions. At Holy Trinity, we noted that their designs were of dogwood blossoms, and vines, to mirror the many dogwood trees on their property. As a group, we decided to unite our symbols with grapes, grapevines, and grape leaves based on John 15:5 when Jesus said, “I am the vine, and you are the branches.”
The congregation and stitchers donated the money to buy the canvas and yarns. Mrs. Bruce Bernhardt Jones Crocker, a church member, designed the cushions. The designs were put on the canvas, by Diane Cook, using a light table. Diane, also a church member, bravely worked at the light table while suffering through chemo and radiation for breast cancer. She lost her battle and passed away on 5/21/1996. Her entire family stayed in touch with the stitchers and were present at the dedication on June, 11, 2000. At that time, Rev. Richard Stetler was in the pulpit and Deacon Patti Fenske was the behind-the-scenes assistant.
Every stitch you see on the cushions was done by women in our congregation. Most of the stitching was done at home, but we met the first Saturday of each month to share what we had stitched, and discuss situations. We quickly became a special group of friends who shared joys and sorrows. Kim Hill was pregnant when we began planning in 1990 and her son, Jordan, was ten when we completed the cushions! Stitchers who are still a part of St. Matthew’s congregation are: Linda Cooper, Liz Herrera, Beth Lingg, and Jody Rudd.
The needlepoint stitch we used is called basketweave which is stitched diagonally across the background canvas because the canvas is less likely to stretch out of shape. Each stitch you see on the cushions was lovingly stitched by hand; as the work progressed, it became nearly impossible to keep track of the hours spend by the caring people involved. From a distance, the background of the cushions appears to be solid red to match the pews, but if you look closely at each background stitch, you can see that a strand of red and a strand of orange yarn were both threaded through the needle together (an effect is called “tweeding”).
Advice for the finishing of the cushions came from Nancy Lukowskie, owner of Fancywork Finishers who had assembled the cushions at the National Cathedral. There were many donations from members of the congregation and a Blind/Silent Auction was held as a project of a New Member Class to pay for the professional finishing of the cushions. The names of the stitchers are on the bottom of the cushion that is nearest to the pulpit. The cushions are numbered in order so that the grapevines flow from one cushion to another. A line item continues in the church budget to use when needed to have the cushions professionally cleaned.
Liz Herrera, one of the stitchers, plans to have flowers on the church altar on June 21 to highlight the 20 years that the needlepoint cushions have graced our altar! After this pandemic, when the church reopens, you are invited to take a “tour” of the Needlepoint Kneelers before or after a service. Should you wish to know more about the stitching or the symbols, please feel free to send an email to bethlingg@comcast.net with your questions.
A fond memory: every Sunday for 10 years, after church, Gordon Harvey would tease me that if we didn’t hurry up and finish the cushions, he would be too old to kneel on them. Rev. Stetler, during the Dedication, noted that Gordon was still able to kneel.
—Beth Lingg
l to r: Bev Burnett, Liz Herrera, Anne Kress, Kim Hill