Passing the Torch for Family Sciences

By Wendy Kaplar

Marilyn Gore’s infectious smile sparkles as she speaks about the artistry of quilting, confirming her deep affection for the craft. Gore’s first connection to sewing was formed under the guidance of her mother’s hands while growing up on their tobacco farm in Bolivia. Using animal feed croker sacks made of coarse burlap, Gore’s mother, Mattie Pearl, taught her how to stitch twines of tobacco to sew handmade rugs for the floor.

“Once the tobacco twine was washed and softened up, they were beautiful rugs,” Gore recalls. She is unsure where her mother got the idea for the rugs; she has never seen them since. Mattie Pearl hand-quilted Gore’s first quilt and taught her how to embroider pillowcases and crochet.

“Living on a farm 70 years ago, it was a way to pass the time. There was not so much to do,” Gore says.

Learning to Sew

Since the age of 14, Gore has used the art of sewing as self-expression. At that time, girls were automatically enrolled in home economics. Ms. Lizzie May Mitchell of Brunswick County Training School was Gore’s home economics teacher. Until 1950, Brunswick County Training School was the only African American school in Brunswick County that went above the eighth grade.

During her time in Ms. Mitchell’s class, Gore developed and honed her sewing technique. Under Ms. Mitchell’s direction, young Gore constructed a stylish suit with an orange jacket (Gore’s favorite color) and matching culottes; from the left-over scraps, she also made her first quilt.

From there, Gore earned a B.S. in Family Consumer Sciences with a concentration in clothing and textiles and a minor in art from Bennett College. Upon graduating from Bennett, Gore returned home to Bolivia to seek employment in Brunswick County, but jobs were scarce. Gore decided to attend graduate school at Howard University. After earning her M.S., Gore then established a 31-year career as a family and consumer science agent with North Carolina Cooperative Extension.

Passing the Home-Ec Torch

Toward the end of her career, there was a running joke between Gore and her daughter, Renee. Renee regularly asked her mother when she planned to retire, to which Gore would playfully respond, “When you give me grandchildren!” The day came when Renee announced she was expecting, initiating the submission of Gore’s formal resignation in February of 2007.

Later, a casual conversation with that same eldest grandchild was the catalyst for Gore’s continuing advocacy of the consumer sciences.

“As I was chatting with my oldest grandson, Garrison, about his future career plans, he asked me about what I did in my career. I told him that I was a Home Economics

(now called Family and Consumer Sciences) major, where I learned how to cook, sew, take care of a family, money management, and much more. In his wisdom, Garrison stated that young people need to learn these skills. And I totally agree!” Gore says.

Right before she retired, Gore met Shaaron Funderburk, CEO and founder of the Off the Streets program, Inc. Funderburk asked Gore to assist the residents of the program, made up of women who have experienced the trauma of sexual abuse and as a result struggle with drug and alcohol addiction. Located in Gastonia, NC, the program offers women transitional housing, counseling, job readiness coaching, life skills training, and community support services. continued on page 17

Puzzles Statepoint Crossword Vacation Destinations

ACROSS

1. Walt Whitman’s dooryard plant

6. Bag, à Paris

9. Sound of astonishment

13. Smell of baking bread, e.g.

14. Self-importance

15. Ma Bell, e.g.

16. List of Catholic saints

17. Bobbsey twin

18. Donor’s bequest

19. *Country to see Stonehenge

21. *Country to see Neuschwanstein Castle

23. Tokyo, in the olden days

24. Way off freeway

25. Gremlin or pixie

28. Assistant

30. Crunches alternative (2 words)

35. Mountain lake

37. Thailand, pre-1939

39. Parlor piece

40. *Maldives continent

41. Plaudit and pomp

43. Unadulterated

44. Child-eating daemon, Greek mythology

46. Red carpet purse

47. Pelvic bones

48. Gives way under force

50. Like acne-prone skin

52. Pose a question

53. Letter opener

55. Morse code dash

57. *Grand Canyon state

61. *Broadway state

65. Loaded 66. Marbled bread

68. Bad car

69. South Pacific sailboats

70. “____ Milk?”

71. Related on mother’s side

72. Unload on eBay

73. Gilligan’s home

74. Tap, e.g.

DOWN

1. Spike, as in punch

2. Iraq’s neighbor

3. Like a maxi skirt

4. Soap plant

5. *One of two countries to see Niagara Falls

6. Mail a package

7. Agha, alt. sp.

8. Gloria Estefan’s hit

9. Disease-causing organism

10. One of algae

11. Diagnostic test

12. One-trick ungulate?

15. Sluggish

20. ____-canceling earbuds

22. Ambulance squad, acr.

24. RE/MAX agent, e.g.

25. *Amalfi Coast country

26. Kenyan tribesman

27. Amazon “club”

29. Vegas cube

31. Cone-shaped quarters

32. Throat dangler

33. *Mona Lisa city

34. Go stealthily

36. Nervous biting victim

38. *Haleakalã island

42. Accent mark

45. Software plug-ins

49. Barack Obama, prepres.

51. Wailed

54. Frustration, in a comic book

56. Laughing African predator

57. *Swiss or Italian skiing destination

58. Steak option

59. “White Wedding”

Billy

60. Eagerness

61. Post-deductions amount

62. Yemen’s neighbor

63. College cadet program

64. ACL location

67. Uncle Sam wanted thisMexico

53. Measuring roll

54. “Happily ____ after”

55. Frugal driver’s acronym

58. Put together continued from page 15

Gore writes grants and sews cosmetics bags for the women so that they have a place to keep their personal toiletries. She was awarded the honor of North Carolina Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (NCAFCS) Professional of the Year in 2021, and is an advisor to the 4-H program and a member of the house advisory board.

Quilting Resources

With a fond appreciation that home economics is more than stitching and stirring, Gore has created a website named “Stitching and Stirring” (stitchingandstirring. com), where novice-to-experienced quilters can contract to complete the embroidery or repair of quilts. The site also features a gallery of Gore’s quilts and details their African American origins.

Gore conducts presentations to quilting guilds across North Carolina, demonstrating her distinctive scrap quilting technique and bringing awareness of the importance of preserving the history of African American quilting. She remains steadfast in her belief in the value of passing on consumer sciences to future generations.

“It’s a shame that we no longer have family and consumer sciences in most schools and colleges. Our children are not equipped with the skills needed to become self-supporting members of society. As a single mother, I made certain my two girls had these skills. My instruction was to ensure they had an education, their own homes and cars, and meaningful jobs. Now, my daughter, Renee, and her husband, Byron, are teaching the same to my two grandsons.”