“Passing the Comfort:” Quilt Exhibit at the Museum of the Great Patriotic War

Posted by: U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine John F. Tefft

On Friday April 11, 2011, with partners from the Museum of the Great Patriotic War and the Ministry of Culture, and alongside representatives from the Dutch, British and German embassies in Kyiv, I participated in the opening ceremony for the exhibit “Passing on the Comfort”. Other project sponsors include the International Menno Simons Centre of the Netherlands and the Mennonite Central Committee of the United States.

This exhibit brings together three stories with a common thread – an international network of Ukrainian, American and Dutch individuals who provided relief and supplies during and after World War II. Original hand-made quilts are displayed alongside never-before-seen archive materials from the Museum of the Great Patriotic War including photographs, letters and other objects sharing the stories of individuals who took great risks to help others.