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Nebraska woman retires from farming to quiltingJUNIATA, Neb. (AP)--Ivan Uden grows corn and soybeans west of Juniata and, like many farm wives, Sharon was always on the farm to be his helping hand. That is, until 10 years ago. "I was joking because all my friends were retiring, and I started having a job in town," Sharon said. She had spent 40 years at home, helping to raise the couple's sons Tim, Tom and Troy. Free time meant pursuing activities like knitting, flower gardening and garment sewing. But when Hastings' Calico Cottage advertised its need for a new employee, Sharon was ready. "I always thought it would be fun, working at a fabric store," she said. Calico Cottage is a hangout for local quilting enthusiasts. And a quilting enthusiast is just what Sharon found herself becoming. She joined the Hastings Quilters Guild, started attending its monthly meetings and made friends with the quilters who stop in her shop. Soon, the Uden home began to fill up with Sharon's creations: wall hangings, table runners, small throws and large quilts. She gave them to family members, especially grandkids, as well as her sons and a cousin who requested a quilt to use during his dialysis treatments. Sharon made the cousin, a farmer, a quilt of John Deere fabric. "That was a real joy for me to make for him because he appreciated it so much," she said. Sharon also tried her hand at the Adams County Fair. This year, she entered a quilt that she had presented to her granddaughter, Chelsea, for her high school graduation in May. The quilt incorporates swatches of Chelsea's black and green high school T-shirts and is reversible. It took Best of Show in the large quilt category. "I told her dad she might feel bad if it got a low ribbon," Sharon said, after finding out that the quilt had won its division. "So, she should be happy." A younger granddaughter, Lacey, caught her grandmother's quilting bug when she was 6 years old and has since been showcasing her skills at the fair, as well. This year, at age 14, Lacey took home a purple ribbon and the grand champion quilt quest award with the quilt she had quilted on a long-arm machine. Sharon is geared up for her latest project, and an ambitious one at that. "The newest idea is, I want to make one for our 50th wedding anniversary," she said. Ivan and Sharon will celebrate 50 years of marriage Aug. 23 and, as of July 23, she hadn't yet begun the project. "It's going to happen," she said, smiling. "I'm going to make it happen." 8/11/08 Date: 8/7/08 Advertisement
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