|
U.S. Postal Service Sews Up Tradition With the Quilts of Gee's Bend Stamps Issued at the Largest Annual Philatelic Event in the United States
WASHINGTON, Aug. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is being issued by the U.S. Postal Service:
What: First-day-of-issue ceremony for the Quilts of Gee's Bend
39-cent commemorative postage stamps. Three of the quilters
of Gee's Bend will be available for interviews and two of the
quilts that are pictured on the stamps will be on display.
Who: Mary Anne Gibbons, Senior Vice President and General Counsel,
U.S. Postal Service.
Nancy Rettinhouse, Acting District Manager, Northern IL, U.S.
Postal Service.
Mary Lee Bendolph, Gee's Bend Quilter.
Loretta Pettway, Gee's Bend Quilter.
Jessie T. Pettway, Gee's Bend Quilter.
Bill and Matt Arnett, Tinwood Alliance.
When: Noon (CT)
Aug. 24, 2006
Where: The American Philatelic Society's (APS) StampShow 2006
Donald E. Stephens Convention Center
5555 North River Road
Hall G
Rosemont, IL 60018
Background: For this sixth issuance in the American Treasures series, Art
Director Derry Noyes chose photographs of 10 quilts created
between 1940 and 2001 by African-American women in Gee's
Bend, Alabama.
The rich quilting community of Gee's Bend is made up
primarily of African Americans descended from slaves. Water
surrounds the community on three sides, and by land, only one
long strip of roadway leads in from the northwest. The
isolation brought with it a priceless gift: the perpetuation
of generations of skilled quilters.
This classic America tradition will be celebrated at the APS
StampShow, Aug. 24, 2006. The largest annual philatelic
event in the United States, the StampShow features dealers, a
public auction, seminars, competitive exhibits, displays of
philatelic rarities, educational opportunities for the whole
family and a discussion and quilting demonstration with
quilters from Gee's Bend on Fri., Aug. 25, at 2 p.m.
Admission is free to the public.
|
|
