It was VERY exciting!

Well done Helen! There was quite a flurry of media attention after the announcement and Helen gave interviews with great strength, coolness and aplomb. I"m very grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the making of this quilt and to have Helen as a friend.

This photo, taken at the opening before the results had been announced, was published in our local newspaper, Janice on the left, Helen on the right:

There were 20 quilts entered in the challenge and I think ours won an award because it had the most immediate impact. Some of the others had strong design, some had strong stories and some had great emotional impact once you had time and strength to study them. But I think the aim of such a quilt must be to immediately engage a disinterested viewer because not many people *want* to think about family violence. Most of the other entries needed some time to study them to 'get the message'. I also think our quilt was much stronger from being drawn from personal experience. Thanks Helen, for your courage in telling your story.