Hands to Larger Service~ Sue Rothhaar, Conclusion

It was my cousin’s wife (and dear friend) Alita who told me about Sue Rothhaar. Alita met Sue when she joined the church that Sue had attended since childhood, the Pietist Church in Chatfield, Ohio.  

Like many of the members of the Pietist Church, Alita and Jim donated their time and talents when the congregation renovated a vacant school to become their new church. The school conversion was successful, fulfilling the needs of the growing congregation. It is a lovely building full of modern amenities. But, as mentioned in our last installment, the members missed the beautiful stained glass windows that were a major part of the old church’s architecture. Sue, who is a skilled quilter, came up with a solution that she kept secret until it was ready to unveil.  



The Solution

Sue Rothhaar stands beside one of the two quilted
wall hangings that she made. Her husband, Ken, helped
her draft the pattern from the stained glass windows that
were an integral part of the original church building.   

 

With the help of her husband Ken, who has CAD experience, Sue set out to replicate the windows with fabrics.  Ken used his drafting skills to make a pattern from a portion of one of the old sanctuary’s windows. Sue decided to make two identical wall hangings for a special room of the new church and set out on shopping trips. Her mission; locate and purchase fabric as close to in color and texture as the glass used in the original windows. As you can imagine, this project was a huge undertaking, but Sue’s passion kept her focused as she drew, cut, and stitched her way through it.  Sue’s choice of fabrics, coupled with her precision sewing skills make the wall hangings true works of art. At last, she and Ken were ready to reveal their “secret”.

 

 

The Surprise

Sunday School room at the new Pietist Church with
Sue Rothhaar's quilted wall hangings that replicate the
stained-glass windows from the original church.

Sue fondly says that some of the members of her and Ken’s Sunday school class have been together since childhood, some have attended for many years, and some are new members, but all of them missed the windows.  The “special room” that Sue created the stained glass wall hangings for was for this Sunday school class. Can you imagine the classmates’ surprise when they first laid their eyes on Sue’s handiwork? These people, who share a bond of worshipping together in the old Pietist church, finally had their stained glass windows.

And I am here to tell you that when you sit in one of the chairs in the large Sunday school room, the light from a side window makes the quilted “windows” look real.

 

Sue shows a picture of the round window that she replicated with
fabrics. This artwork hangs in the lounge of the new Pietist Church in Chatfield.

Hands to Larger Service

Making the quilted wall hangings was quite an accomplishment, but Sue is not one to rest on her laurels. With the success of the Sunday school wall hangings behind her, she had an idea for another gift to her church; one that could be enjoyed by everyone.  With a chuckle, Sue says that after she “recovered” from making the big wall hangings, she set out to replicate another window from the old church. Again, with Ken’s drafting skills to help her, she designed and sewed a round wall hanging that featured a dove with an olive branch. The original glass version is the top element of a larger window from the brick church building.  This wall hanging proudly hangs in the front lounge, along with a glass case from the brick church that houses Pietist Church heirlooms and memorabilia.

 

 

 

Many thanks to Alita, who arranged email communication between Sue and I. I contacted Sue and we made arrangements to meet on a (very!) cold day in mid-February at the new church building so that I could interview her and to see her handiwork. The pictures of her quilted stained-glass wall hangings do not do justice to the quality of Sue’s work.

Sue is not apt to stop sewing and designing anytime soon. She continues to bless her church with her art.

The day that I visited the church, Sue showed me a nativity wall hanging she had made. Sue also makes fancy western show shirts for her oldest granddaughter.



Sue Rothhaar displays a recent project, a quilted
nativity wall hanging, made for her church.

What strikes me the most about Sue is that such a talented woman is so down-to-earth. She has a quiet way about her that makes it easy for conversation to flow. Of her accomplishments, Sue humbly says, “I hope my quilts will inspire someone else to try their hand at quilting.”

I am sure that Sue is an inspiration to many. One thing is for sure, the legacy that she has given to the Pietist church will inspire many generations to follow, along with the old bibles and other important church artifacts that are carefully displayed in the glass case that was brought to the new church from the old one.

Marcheta *Inspired