I have found this a very sobering process.  Working on it while listening to the plight of the Syrian refugees in Hungary and elsewhere in Europe, has made me realize, once again, how fortunate I am.  My grandparents came to the U.S. one legally and one illegally in 1913 and were able to stay, succeed and raise their children in a mostly safe environment.

It meant so much to me to be a part of this.  I used footprints made of denim jeans on my quilt to represent the path the migrants take and it surprises me about how often I see a foot print on a hiking trail and remember the danger they face and the fortitude they exhibit.  I still remember several names and corresponding ages of the ones who died trying for a safe and happy life.  The treatment they have been shown by our current administration breaks my heart. Those footprints show the journey that people took, in hopes of a better life.  Though wind and rain can erase the physical prints, hopefully the Migrant Quilt Project will ensure that their lives will not be forgotten.

(Bonnie Halchin-Smith)