It took 32 years, more than 150 volunteers, and one pandemic to complete the needlepoint pew cushions at Westminster Presbyterian Church.
“That was the one good thing about COVID,” said Pat Allen, one of the founders of the project. “It gave everybody time to stitch.”
If that sounds like a lot of time, that’s because the church needed a lot of cushions. Westminster Presbyterian is located inside a massive 1914 Gothic style church in Northeast Portland. The sanctuary houses 80 wooden pews, and most of them are 18 feet long.
That’s about 1,440 feet of hand-stitched needlepoint cushions, featuring more than 700 uniquely designed patterns.
One of the volunteers did some rough math and figured that with 14-count fabric – that’s 196 stitches per square inch – the project required close to 62 million basket weave stitches.
“It’s very exciting because I feel like it’s an unusual project and probably one of the biggest volunteer projects for needlepoint that we know of in this country,” Allen said. “It’s exciting to see something that is a lasting legacy for the church.”
The needlepoint designs are inspired by the church’s large stained glass sanctuary windows. About half the cushion designs feature geometric patterns inspired by the glass. The others commemorate Biblical stories, Portland history, Oregon landmarks and flowers. One pew is dedicated to children’s author Beverly Cleary, who attended the church as a child and described Westminster Presbyterian as the “big stone church” where character Ramona Quimby performs in a Christmas pageant.
Volunteers stitched individual design squares, then joined them together into long pew cushions.
Planning for the project began in the late 1980s, and by the early 1990s the first cushions were being stitched by volunteers. Over the years, more than 150 people, ranging in age from 12 to 95, contributed their time and talent to create the cushions.
The pieces for the 70 pews in the main sanctuary were completed in 2004. But as the numbers of volunteers dwindled, the project slowed. The final 10 pews in the balcony were the last to come together, with the work of 20 stitchers.
“Sometimes I think about it as building a cathedral,” Gwen Harper, who led the balcony pew effort until her death in 2019, previously told The Oregonian. “Just one brick at a time, and you keep going until it’s done.”
The church, located at 1624 N.E. Hancock St., will hold a dedication of the completed project during the Mother’s Day service at 10:30 a.m. Sunday. Docent-led tours of the needlepoint art are available by appointment by emailing office@westprespdx.org or calling the church at 503-287-1289.
