A new Maryborough craft group has turned creativity into community care, donating 19 handmade quilts to local mental health services to help patients and visitors feel more at home.
The quilts will be shared between The Oasis Crisis Support Space and the Subacute Older Persons Mental Health Unit, providing warmth and comfort to people experiencing mental health challenges.
Maryborough Quilters founder Josh McCall said the group, which began earlier this year, has been focused on creating connection through creativity and giving back to the local community.
“I started the group in January because the closest social quilting group was in Childers, and I wanted something local that could bring people together,” Josh said.
“We’ve built a really lovely little community where we help each other, share ideas and make quilts to donate.
“Most of our members say they already have enough quilts at home, so we wanted to make something meaningful for others.”
The group meets every Sunday afternoon 12.30 pm to 4.30 pm at The Hut in Maryborough and welcomes people of all ages and experience levels.
Josh said the idea to donate to The Oasis came after seeing a post on social media promoting a meet and greet with the service.
“I went along to meet the team from The Oasis and told them about what we were doing, everyone was on board straight away,” he said.
“It feels really special knowing these quilts will go to people who can use them and find some comfort from them.”
Mental Health Service Development Manager Fiona Prescott said the donation would make a meaningful difference to the people accessing care and support.
“These quilts will bring warmth not only in a physical sense, but also emotional comfort to people during some of the most difficult times in their lives,” she said.
“We’re so grateful to Josh and the Maryborough Quilters for their generosity.
“It’s a beautiful reminder of how creativity and compassion can support mental health and recovery.”
The Oasis Crisis Support Space offers an alternative to the emergency department for people in mental health crisis, providing short-term support from peer workers and clinicians in a calm, non-clinical setting.
The new Subacute Older Persons Mental Health Unit is a 10-bed facility that delivers recovery-focused care for older people living with mental illness, supported by a multidisciplinary team of health professionals.
Both services are located at Maryborough Hospital and are part of the Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service’s ongoing commitment to providing person-centred mental health care close to home.