The Tutwiler quilters, members of the Craftsmen¹s Guild of Mississippi, are part of the Tutwiler Community Education Center (TCEC). Responding to a strong quilting tradition of women in Tutwiler and surrounding towns, Sr.Maureen Delaney SNJM, Director of TCEC and Sr. Joann Blomme O.P., Counselor at the Tutwiler Clinic, organized the group in 1988 as a way for these women to make money to support their families. As of today the quilters are about 10 to 12 women from Tutwiler and the surrounding communities.

The art of quilt making has been passed down from generation to generation with improvisation as the key word to this style of quilt making. Many of these piecers and quilters, learning quilting from their mothers and grandmothers, take traditional patterns, mix them up, turn them up-side down, mix colors, etc; the effect is a beautiful cacophony of color and design.
 
This quilt program not only preserves the rich quilt making tradition of these African-American women, but is also a way for women in our area to support themselves and their families. They receive 80% of the price of these products; the other 20% helps buy materials.