Church outreach, quilt exhibit headline weekend events

On Friday, a Cape Girardeau church will host a major event at Arena Park geared toward families; and the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri will kick off a promising exhibit featuring impressive quilts.

For years Cape First Church held a Family Day celebration in Cape Girardeau. There was food and entertainment -- a festival-like atmosphere. But in recent years the church has re-imagined the gathering to serve as a community outreach.

There will still be food and fun, but the church is also connecting the community with various organizations. Everything from free mattresses to families without beds to school supplies and more. Communications pastor David Urzi told the Southeast Missourian the church expects this year's event to double the 2020 gathering.

"Our goal is to find a need and fill it, and find a heart and heal it," Urzi told the Missourian.

The event is scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at Arena Park in Cape Girardeau. A similar gathering is also scheduled for Aug. 28 in Sikeston.

The Arts Council's "Seeing Stars: 2021 Regional Quilt Exhibition" opens Friday with a reception from 5 to 9 p.m. at 16. N. Spanish St. in Cape Girardaeu. The exhibit will be on display through Aug. 28.

This exhibit features quilts from 10 artists from Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky. Rachael Baar, the exhibitions' juror, is also the curator of the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Kentucky. If you've ever been to the Paducah museum, you know what kind of caliber will be on display. This exhibit should give attendees an inside look at what talented quilters are able to produce.

We're also excited to see the work of one particular artist, former Southeast Missourian employee and local artist Marjorie Suedekum.

These are two very different events. However, they provide unique opportunities for a range of audiences. We applaud Cape First for its outreach to the community. And the Arts Council continues to inspire with its exhibitions. To learn about other events happening in the community, be sure to check out Page 2 of the Southeast Missourian and semoevents.com.