Tuesday, October 8, 2024 – Artquiltmaker Blog

I went out of town with DH and it wasn’t a great weekend. I was just in a bad mood all weekend, it was hot and the events were not interesting. Or I just couldn’t appreciate them. 🙁

I found a couple of quilt shops, but when I had time, I decided I wasn’t up for the half hour drive each way on my own. A friend with whom I usually spend time wasn’t available.

In an effort not to be a sourpuss and to try and see the good in the trip, I wanted to share a couple of photos with you.

One of the good things during the trip was Fosselman’s. Fosselman’s is a full-service, old-fashioned soda fountain that offers both sit-down and to-go items. They make all our ice cream on the premises in small batch freezers.

I went there while DH was at a members only event and ate WAY too much ice cream. I sat and wrote postcards and wrote in my journal while I ate a hot fudge sundae, etc. It was a good way to spend a couple of hours.

1824 West Main Street, Alhambra, CA 91801
(626) 282-6533

Monday – Saturday 10:00 am to 10:00 pm
Sunday 11:00 am to 10:00 pm

The activities were centered in San Gabriel, California right near the Mission San Gabriel Arcangel. The organization dedicated a girls’ high school, Mission San Gabriel High School*. I was impressed with the principal’s dedication and the students that I met. We had dinner in the courtyard of the mission after a tour of the recently restored church.

The tour guide was a parishioner and she was very good.

The church had an arson fire in 2020, which required $8 million in restoration. The entire back of the church was significantly damaged, though the walls did not fall. The altar was not touched, though had smoke and water damage. They still need another few million.

I have seen a lot of amazing altars all over the world. I was really impressed with this one. I have never seen one with statues like this. It was really different and interesting.

The painting on the altar is tempera on wood. The statues on the altar are:

- - Virgin Mary (bottom middle)
  - St. Joachim (bottom left)
  - St. Francis of Asissi ( top left)
  - Archangel Gabriel (center top)
  - St. Anthony of Padua (top right)
  - St. Dominic (bottom right)

We had dinner in the courtyard. The location was beautiful and I am sure the food was delicious. I wouldn’t know since they had nothing gluten free and weren’t prepared for me.????

We went to take a look at the garden and saw a beautiful view of the bells.

The garden has a wonderful fountain where Native Americans hold ceremonies now.

I thought Mission San Gabriel was worth a visit, though I would have rather been at home in the cool sewing.

Doctors, nurses and Charitable Foundation Board

The big check presentation was worth the less than stellar weekend. The hospital does such great work with the kids AND their families. The treatment lasts from birth through 18-20, because of the changes happening as kids grow. The treatment is holistic as well. The program includes surgeries, speech therapy, orthodontics and dentistry, psychological counseling for the whole family and many other aspects that help develop a happy, healthy, mentally stable person. I am so proud of the Native Sons for this effort. The spaghetti dinners, BBQs and raffle baskets contribute to the donation every year. There is no corporate angel giving the money and the Board of the Charitable Foundation does not get paid or reimbursed for their work. All the money that comes from $5, $10 and $20 fundraising gifts goes straight to funding treatment. You can donate at the NSGW website.