By Dawn Putney in Carrollton, GA
Name of Panel: “I Can Do Anything I can Imagine”
Dream Theme: Space
Did you enjoy this project? “Yes! It was an incredible opportunity to combine my love of fabric and quilting with my father’s dream of working with the Space Program.”
What could the IFC do next? “Multigenerational – both in subject matter and in those creating the blocks.”
Materials & Techniques Used: Hand dyed fabric, recycled garment linings, yarn all stitched on a fountain made from an old pair of khaki pants. Backing is nylon Kite fabric. 
What is the story behind your panel? 
“Hi, my name is Dawn Putney and I am going to tell you about the quilt block I made for the Dream Rocket Quilt project. I created the block in memory of my father, Robert Putney who passed away in Huntsville, Alabama on August 16, 2009, the day before the official press conference for the Dream Rocket Quilt. My father spent many years working with the Space Program and it seemed very appropriate to share his dream.I hand dyed the fabric I used for the background. My father was fascinated with this process and loved the colors in these fabrics. The individuals items on the quilt were made out of recycled garment linings. The lines connecting my father to the plow as well as to the space objects represent the reins connected to the plow and symbolize my father’s connections to many aspects of the Space Program. The layer between the front and back of the quilt block was cut from a pair of my father’s old khaki pants.
The beginning point for the design was a photo of my father as a young man on a plow. He began his work life as a farmer and as his life progressed, he also worked as a carpenter, automotive assembler, draftsman, and finally as a designer in the Space Program full time from 1965-1985 and then part time from 1985-1998.The object in the center of the block represents the Space Shuttle and the many experiments conducted on those flights that my father worked on.
The top center object represents the Hubble Telescope for which my father worked on the preliminary sketches and watched that project transform over the years until it was finally completed.
The 2 spacemen and the rockets to which they are tethered represent the tools and equipment my father designed throughout his work in the Space Program used by many astronauts.
Saturn in the top right corner, and the sun, comet and stars represent the far reaches of space we have yet to explore.
The request that we consider using recycled materials in our quilt block also connected with my father’s passion for recycling trees. Anytime he found a tree down by the side of the road or even when the beavers cut down his fruit trees, he would drag the trees home and after drying the wood, created incredible carvings and furniture.
Even in the last week of his life my father was still active, still solving puzzles, and spending time with the family.
In 1993, my father dictated the following statement: “All of my work life has been enjoyable but the most rewarding has been my work here in Huntsville, which for the most part has been in research and development for NASA. I feel privileged to have been a part of the Space Program, especially enjoyable and rewarding were my efforts on the Lunar Rover used on the moon landing, the solar panels on Sky Lab, high temperature furnaces, plasma separator and special tools for astronaut use for manufacturing in the gravity-free environment in outer space.”
Throughout his life, April 12, 1926 to August 16, 2009, whether on the farm, in the woods by himself, working, or spending time with family, my father was an awesome teacher, mentor, and dreamer. I grew up watching his dream of working with the Space Program come true and I carry with me all the many life lessons he taught me and the confidence he instilled in me that I can do anything I can dream.”