Cardinals featured in new barn quilt

Shawano County’s 393rd barn quilt is now on display on a barn owned by Curt and Loretta Waegli at W9985 County Road A northwest of Shawano.

The pattern they selected features five cardinals and is called “Our Red-feathered Friends.”

“I just love cardinals,” Loretta Waegli said, “so this pattern is perfect for us. I just love it.”

The barn quilt was sponsored by Jim and Mary Allbaugh, of Shawano.

“Mary and I are honored to add a small bit of help to the Shawano County barn quilt project,” Jim Allbaugh said. “We have become more and more impressed with the growth of the barn quilt project that has really put Shawano County on the map and brought notoriety nationwide to our area. My heart swells with pride whenever Mary and I are driving around and see a barn quilt. We congratulate Jim and Irene Leuenberger on the success of this project they started 12 years ago.”

“Jim (Allbaugh) has been a great supporter of our barn quilt project,” Leuenberger said, “and he even helped Len Pubanz and me build the beautiful barn quilt sign on the south edge of Shawano. I am so pleased that he and Mary sponsored this unique barn quilt.”

Curt Waegli’s dad purchased the 80-acre farm in 1964 and gave it to Waeglis as a wedding gift when they got married in June 1965. They have since sold five acres for hunting but still own 75 acres, which are rented out for cropland.

Curt Waegli grew up on a dairy farm on the corner of Highway 29 and County Road U. It was a dairy farm for many years, but the cows were sold 18 years ago. Curt’s younger brother, Dave, now lives there.

Curt was a cheesemaker for many years, starting at Hermansfort Cheese Factory where they made cheddar cheese. He was there for 10 years, then worked for seven years at F.R. Buss Cheese Factory in Caroline, where they made mostly cheddar.

Loretta Waegli served as a pastor for nearly 22 years, the last seven at United Methodist in Wittenberg. She just retired, but she knows she will stay busy filling in for other pastors from time to time.

Curt and Loretta raised three sons, Tim, Tom and Jeff, and one daughter, Kelly. They now have five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, with another on the way.

The Waegli barn quilt was painted by the Shawano County barn quilt committee and was put on display by LeRoy and Keenan Raddant, both of whom work for Raddant Electric in Shawano.