Quilt Church is a recurring community hand-quilting project in which rotating cohorts of queer artists learn fundamental hand sewing techniques and complete a full quilt from start to finish. Each cohort spans the course of five months and ends with a quilt raffle, funds from which are donated to a local Chicago organization. Situated within feminist and queer histories of community craft practice and passage, Quilt Church aims to be a space for accessible craft education, skill sharing, collective research and queer community. The project is organized by Stevie Emrich in partnership with, and hosted by, Walls Turned Sideways.

Walls Turned Sideways (WTS) is an art gallery, studio, & community space dedicated to artists and communities impacted by incarceration. Their mission is to build bridges that connect people in prison, their families, artists, and other community members using art, exhibitions, and political education with a focus on collective liberation, healing and abolition. Past and current collaborators of WTS include Quilt Church Chicago, Prison + Neighborhoods Art and Education Project (PNAP), Cannabis Equity Illinois, Chicago Torture Justice Center, and Coalition to Decarcerate Illinois.

With this additional support from The Awesome Foundation, Quilt Church will be able to fund two cohorts running simultaneously: one for experienced quilters that focuses on more intricate pattern work and color theory, and a second group for beginners that dives more deeply into technique and traditional craft methodologies.