|
Tender Hearts Quilts reopens after accident
By Gina Hamilton • Contributing Writer
 | | Cheryl Thompson delights in still using the sewing machine of her grandmother, Sarah Gentry, in her shop at Tender Heart Quilts in Millboro. (Recorder photo by Gina Hamilton) |
|
MILLBORO - There's a feeling of gentleness, of quiet times spent around a sewing table, in Cheryl Thompson's shop, Tender Heart Quilts, much like the quiet demeanor of the woman herself.
On Tuesday, she was pleased to welcome customers back into the building, which had been closed since March 5, after a departing customer accidentally drove through the front wall.
Now, after more than $10,000 in repairs, she has cleaned and restocked her business and classes and quilt club meetings are resuming monthly and quarterly.
As a nurse by profession, Thompson has found a way to combine love and compassion in the entrepreneurial business that will celebrate the start of its fifth anniversary with a quilt retreat, show, and open house June 27-29. It seems that divine inspiration guided her to the name for her business.
"I'm a nurse; in the dictionary it means tender, and the heart symbolizes love, so Tender Heart Quilts," she said. And a coffee cup she happened to findwith Psalm 37.4 provides the theme: "Delight yourself in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart." The special cup is not for sale; it also features the heart motif she adopted for her shop.
For those who enjoy quilting and related crafts, the store is a wonderland of fabrics, craft books and kits, spools of every color thread, some finished quilts, and handmade gifts from 25 other crafters. These items range from jewelry to crocheted baby sets and ornaments, baskets, stained glass, ceramics, tote bags, wall hangings and more. Thompson said at last count she had 1,400 bolts of fabric in the store.
"You can never have enough fabric, but you can't have it all," she said.
Fabric comes from major companies including Thimbleberries, Benartex, Moda, Marcus Brothers, South Sea Imports, and Timeless Treasures. Thompson credits the Internet for making fabric purchases available, noting big wholesalers don't want to come out so far into rural areas. She said two big markets are in Oregon and Texas.
For this friendly, unassuming woman, the shop is a dream come true, and with the support of her family and her faith, she made it happen, overcoming the recent adversity. Thompson grew up in a family where the tradition of quilting and sewing were strong. As a child, she recalled, "I was always crocheting, doing latchwork stuff. My grandmother had and old Singer treadle sewing machine and I used to help her with simple stuff."
It was about eight years ago that she started quilting, during the time she was a stay-at-home mom after son Josh was born; he's now 11 years old.
"I took quilting classes at Rachel's in Staunton and at the Hummingbird Inn in Goshen and got books and started doing it," Thompson recalled. Since both her grandmothers were adept in crafts and sewing, and her husband Wade's grandmothers were quilters, she decided to carry on the family tradition.
On her Web site, she notes the building on Route 42 South (Cowpasture River Highway) was a oneroom store in the 1950s and '60s operated by Wade Thompson's grandfather, Ben Black. "After he passed away, it was sold and used as a hunting camp. We bought it back in 1996 in hopes of opening it back up one day as a craft and quilting shop," she said.
With help of her husband and other family members, including also their sons Jordan, now 18, and Jesse, who is 15, they worked on the building for close to two years before opening the renovated 48-by-24-foot, two-story quilt shop in June 2004.
"My husband and sons have helped out with building and repairs, and my grandmother was the inspiration," Thompson said. She added, "I credit the Lord, who has given me the courage to do this."
Inspiration near and
far
Part of the joy she has in her business comes from the customers. "I've met people from all over the country, even a couple from Greenland and from Holland. The variety of people who come through this little town is amazing," she said. "I can't imagine not meeting all the customers and people coming to the shop. That's the neat part, I think."
As to what it takes to own a small business, Thompson said, "A lot of money, time and patience, and sometimes I don't have enough!"
She has worked with SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) and the Small Business Administration, attended workshops for entrepreneurs, and is a member of the local chamber. Thompson said the state's Department of Tourism will help advertise her business at visitor centers, a service to help small businesses. She also attends quilt shows as a vendor and will be at the Hotel Roanoke this weekend. "The goal is to reach out beyond the county border," she said.
With the help of local churches, she participated in mission trips
|
)