Las Pilitas Fire Quilt

Today I was dining for lunch with a friend in the east room of The Porch in Santa Margarita, CA. Over an hour into my visit there I finally noticed hanging high on the west wall was a most remarkable quilt. This classic example of modern textile folk art clearly shows an ominous scene of wildfire all over a line of hills with a burn area below that which  features a chimney left over from a burned house. Adjacent to the burn area are unburnt areas plus a body of water representing Santa Margarita Lake I assume. Upon surveying this quilt I concluded that it either represented the quilter's perception of the 1985 Las Pilitas Fire or the 1994 Highway 41 Fire both of which directly impacted this town. As I left the establishment I asked the proprietor what this quilt memorialized and she confirmed it was represented the Las Pilitas Fire and that a customer and member of the community had donated it to the restaurant to adorn its wall. I neglected to attempt to find out whom quilted this item but will update this posting if I acquire that information. Oh, and the food at this establishment is rather good. Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).