Loma Tippin of Independence Township has spent the past 30 years hunting signatures of U.S. presidential couples.
She’s not an autograph hound ? she embroiders them into quilts, one for first ladies and a second for presidents.
‘When I first started, I thought I’d get one or two,? Tippin said. ‘After that, I thought, I might as well get more.?
She now has the signatures of 11 first ladies and six presidents. She is keeping careful watch on next year’s presidential election ? if Hillary Clinton wins, she and her husband, Bill, would have the distinction of appearing on both quilts.
‘What really gets me, is that Bill would be on the first-ladies quilt, surrounded by all these women,? Tippin said.
She started the quilts in 1976 to celebrate the nation’s bicentennial. The first-ladies quilt has a red-white-and-blue pattern designed by Mountain Mist as the background, embroidered White House on a blue background, and quilted signature blocks.
‘Me being tight, I bought the pillow pattern for $5 rather than the quilt pattern for $20,? she said. ‘That worked out for me.?
It is labelled ?1944-2176,? starting when Eleanor Roosevelt lived in the White House and ending with America’s quadcentennial.
‘People ask me how I plan to fill these spaces so far into the future. I tell them I have that under control,? she would write in her requests for signatures. ‘I will leave my quilt to a family member with instructions on how to finish it. If they become lax, I will haunt them by a gentle tap on the left shoulder from time to time. If that doesn’t jar them to action, I will be reincarnated and finish it myself.?
She has since softened her expectations of her descendants.
‘I’ve taken the pressure off ? I won’t haunt them,? she said. ‘It would be nice if they do, but even if they don’t continue, it’s still a neat quilt.?
Her daughter Corinne and grandson Larry said they may want to continue the project. If not, she would like the quilts to be donated, perhaps to Ford’s Presidential Library in Ann Arbor.
The presidential quilt is blue with red-and-white trim, decorated with Independence Hall in the center, 13 stars, and the dates 1976-2176. It bears the signatures of presidents Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush.
Signatures on her first-ladies quilt are Bess W. Roosevelt, Mamie Doud Eisenhower, Jacqueline Kennedy, Lady Bird Johnson, Patricia Nixon, Betty B. Ford, Rosalynn Carter, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Laura W. Bush.
Acquiring the signatures hasn’t been easy ? her collection includes several rejection letters from presidential secretaries and aides, most along the lines of, ‘Sorry, but we receive too many requests like this. Hope you understand.?
Acquiring the signatures required years of dogged determination, assistance from congressmen, including U.S. Rep. Elford Cederberg, help from friends with personal connections, and luck.
When going after the Fords? signatures in 1976, she heard the president was visiting Michigan Gov. William Milliken. Her late husband Bill didn’t think she would succeed, but she waited until the Fords showed up, approached the motorcade, explained what she wanted to the Secret Service agents who surrounded her, and got the signatures.
‘Then I had to have a place to put them,? she said.
When pursuing the Clintons, a lady from Livonia heard about Tippin’s project and contacted her. She said her niece worked as a secretary for Hillary, and offered to help, Tippin said.
The quilt isn’t perfect ? Betty Ford didn’t use the permanent-ink pen Tippin supplied, so her signature is fading, and George W. Bush’s signature may have been made with an autograph machine.
‘It’s had its ups and down, but it’s been a lot of fun,? Tippin said.
She doesn’t think her quilts are unique ? actually, she thinks organizing a quilt show of presidential quilts would be a great idea.
‘It would be great to get all the quilts together ? that would be fun,? she said. ‘Maybe later. The doctors tell me I have another 20 years.?