STULL ? Amid the low humming of three sewing machines Saturday, Rita Lesser helped put the finishing touches on a few fresh quilts.

The women here at the Stull United Methodist Church have been tacking tiles of fabric together all morning, all in the name of charity and compassion.

“Several of us have a passion for sewing,” Lesser explained. As the chairwoman of Nurture, Outreach and Witness, which coordinates charitable events for the church, she decided to use the church group’s passion to help others.

This year, the group’s quilts – a project they call “Blankets of Blessings” – will be donated to the Douglas County Visiting Nurses Assn. and a few needy families in the area.

Lesser talked about one boy in the area who had been struggling with brain tumors. He had surgery, she said, but is now blind and still recovering. “He’s been fighting a long battle,” she said.

Blankets aren’t just about warmth, the group knows. They’re about comfort, about feeling safe.

And for the church group, the work is about a feeling of fellowship and getting together to help others.

At the end of the room, Judy Wulfkuhle tied green thread through holes in a quilt, making sure it holds together, strong and sturdy.

“This is the final step,” Wulfkuhle said.

After that, Wulfkuhle’s quilt and a stack of about two dozen others will be sent to their new owners.

And with them comes a small tag sewn into the fabric that reads: “Made with Tender Loving Care.”