Dorothy Mills, a member of Knox Burlington for 53 years, is a quilter extraordinaire. For more than 25 years, Dorothy and a bevy of ladies have met weekly, at the church, to ply their needles. They hope to have about 30 baby quilts ready to sell at Knox’s Christmas bazaar on November 28.
Dorothy’s connection with Presbyterianism began, at Westminster Church, in Hamilton, Ontario. She vividly remembers, at age seven, on Friday evenings going to the church where missionaries Mr. and Mrs. Grant were “running pictures.” Young Dorothy Hillock (as she was then) was fascinated by the black-and-white slide shows of Africa. “Back then what else did you do. We went to church, Sunday School and, later, Young People’s,” Dorothy says.
At Westminster Dorothy was a Girl Guide during the Depression years. No one had any money, however, Dorothy and her life-long friend Margaret Wands sold enough cookies to pay their way to camp. “We had to take sugar sacks with us. We were picked up by a truck. On the way, we stopped at a field and were told to pack our sacks with hay. And that’s what we slept on. Six to a tent, by Lake Huron.”
In 1945 all the local boys, including Don Mills, came home from their World War II duties and joined the Senior Choir. Soon Dorothy and all her girlfriends were engaged. Dorothy married Don, in 1948, and, in the fullness of time, the Mills had four children.
In 1949, Westminster had a serious fire and the choir members, including the Mills, raised enough money through skits, shows, concerts and bake sales to buy a new organ. The organ cost between $50,000 and $75,000, according to Dorothy. A staggering sum of money in the early 1950s.
In 1960, the Mills family moved to Burlington where they joined Knox. This church was established in 1845 and, in 1995, when its 150th Anniversary nigh, the congregation decided to have a commemorative quilt made. Everyone signed the fabric and Dorothy and Barbara Hedley embroidered the names. This handmade quilt still hangs in the Bell Tower Room of the church.
This project turned out to be the beginning of the Quilters Group. Sadly the quilters are down to 12, including Dorothy and Barbara, and the youngest member is 78. Never-the-less, this hardy group of ladies takes on most of the cooking and organizing for church events such as the annual Burns Supper. At Knox the traditional menu features roast beef, haggis, neeps, tatties and trifle. Burns’ Address to the Haggis (“Great Chieftain O’ the puddin’ race.”) and the ritual stabbing of the haggis has always been performed by 90-year-old George Duncan in full Highland kit.
The Quilters also hold a monthly casserole potluck to help seniors who live alone. And in September, the Quilters hosted the regional Womens Missionary Society (WMS) fall rally, at Knox. Plucky Dorothy baked 90 mini-cheesecakes for the gathering, attended by 54 women. However, the highlight of the events at Knox, this year, was the arrival of their new minister, Reverend Emma Duncan, a graduate of Toronto’s Knox College. Rev. Duncan was ordained, in June, and for the ordination service she was piped into the church by her husband Richard Duncan.
While the congregation is delighted with Emma, Dorothy and a few other long-time members are disappointed with her push to install a video screen in the sanctuary of this historical church. Not only will it cover up a handsome stained glass window, but Dorothy feels such an innovation destroys the atmosphere of peace one should experience in church. (For the record, Knox is one of the oldest buildings in the Burlington area and is of architectural and historical importance. As such, it would seem a shame to tamper with it.)
Despite this, Dorothy intends to bake on. One of her favourite offerings goes back to Westminster. In the 1940s a friend, in the Heather Circle, gave Dorothy the recipe for Granny Duncan’s Butter Tart Squares. (By the way, Richard and Emma Duncan are not related to George or Granny.) This recipe originated in Scotland and has a rich shortbread base.
BUTTER TART SQUARES
BASE: 1 cup butter, 2 cups flour, 4 tbsp icing sugar. Mix together and press into a 13” x 10” pan and smooth. (TIP: Place a piece of paper on top of the base and even it out using a rolling pin.)
TOPPING:
2 cups brown sugar
1 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp vanilla
½ cup butter
4 eggs
Put all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat it all until smooth. Add 2 cups raisins. Bake at 350F until top is brown. No more than 30 minutes.
(TIP: Put the pan into the freezer until it is real cold. Then cut the baked mixture into squares. This avoids a runny mess.)
