Sue Kassler, Owner, Manager, Store Staff and Teacher
Sue has been an avid sewer all her life and has been quilting since 1990. She has taught in quilt shops, for seniors' programs and privately prior to opening Quilter's Stash. Her background is in floral design and she loves to experiment with color. Sue's expertise is in hand piecing and hand quilting.

Terri Bearer, Teacher 
Terri started quilting with friends 15 years ago and is still going strong! A retiree from Bell Atlantic and former quilt shop owner, she now teaches quilting for enjoyment. She particularly is fond of working with color and non-traditional quilting techniques.

Maureen Braconi, Teacher
Maureen explored a variety of crafts, including crewelwork, cross-stitch and cutwork lace, before coming to quilting 10 years ago. Now a self-confessed "quilting junkie," she finds it great therapy and a no-boundaries form of expression.

Donna Jean Downer, Teacher
Donna Jean has been sewing for most of her life. A former home economics teacher, she has been "quilt addicted" since 1994 and is enjoying every moment of it! She has taught quilting to adult ESL (English as a Second Language) students. Her true love is designing original art quilts. Donna Jean is a member of the Quilters' Connection guild.

Janet Elia, Store Staff and Teacher
Janet made her first sampler quilt 20 years ago and has been following her quilting passion ever since. By day, she's a high school nurse and by night, a quilting maniac! Her motto is: "One can never have too much fabric or too many projects."

Melanie Egan, Store Staff and Teacher
When Melanie was a young girl, she loved to sit with a needle and stitch her mother's fabric scraps.  Her mother got her started on needlepoint, and other crafts soon followed.  She made her first quilt for her then-boyfriend (and now husband) from a pattern in a women's magazine using her mother's sewing machine.  "Quilting is something I've always felt drawn to," she states, "and it's been a great source of creativity, contentment and friendship."

Bev Fears, Teacher
Bev has been quilting since 1993.  She has always loved sewing and crafting.  As a youngster she made Barbie clothes out of fabric scraps and old clothing.  She learned garment construction in high school, and continued to sew as a hobby after she graduated from college.  After her third child was born, she took a beginner’s quilt class in hand piecing and has been passionate for quilting ever since.  She thinks quilters are the nicest people you’ll ever meet, and has never met a quilter she didn’t like!

Linda Baxter Lasco, Teacher Emeritus; Guest Instructor
Linda has been quilting since the pre-rotary cutting days, making her first quilt in 1967. A member of the Artful Hands Quilt Guild for over 20 years, she also served as Program Chair for the Rhododendron Needlers Quilt Guild. She founded the TNT Quilters, a small group that meets once a month to make quilts for charity. Linda has always enjoyed being auctioneer for many quilt guilds and for the New England Images Show. As a quilter and teacher, she especially likes quick-cut techniques and finding new ways to use up scraps -- so much so that her colleagues at Quilter's Stash affectionately dubbed Linda the "Scrap Queen."  Linda is currently living and working in Paducah, Kentucky as an Associate Editor for AQS.  Linda was a guest instructor here at Quilter's Stash in January 2008.

Paula Leahey, Teacher
Paula has devoted herself to quilting for over a decade, working for area quilt and craft stores and as a teacher for Quilt Escapes. Paula's specialty is machine piecing and several of her works have been chosen to travel with the Hoffman Challenge and were exhibited at the Quilters Heritage Celebration and the NQA 25th anniversary show.

JoAnn McCluskey, Teacher
JoAnn has been quilting for more than 12 years, though she’s been sewing for as long as she can remember. She enjoys the challenge of learning new things, stretching beyond her comfort zone, and sharing what she knows with others.

Sharon Monahan, Asst. Manager, Store Staff and Teacher
Sharon has had a lifelong love of fabric and color. Most of her piecing and quilting time is spent at the sewing machine, producing contemporary nature and landscape quilts. She particularly likes working with African batiks and designs, ethnic fabrics and, over the past year, has begun adding beads and other embellishments to her work.

Antoinette Riskalla, Teacher
Antoinette has been "sitting in front of a sewing machine since she was nine."  A confirmed fabriholic even before taking up quilting, she has long since given away most of her non-quilting stuff to make room for more quilting fabric. Antoinette prefers piecing traditional blocks using lush, contemporary fabrics. 

Deb Woodhams, Teacher
Deb has been a crafter all her life.  Besides quilting, Deb is also a fabulous knitter.  When she took up quilting, she said, "I wanted to learn to quilt like my Southern relatives."  The first quilt class she took was an adult education course in hand quilting, thus beginning her collection of fabric -- and UFOs!  With her creative ability and extensive crafting background, Deb is now an accomplished quilter. 

Claudia Zink, Teacher
Claudia’s grandmother taught her to sew at a very early age, and was a “huge influence” in her life, instilling a sense of confidence that has stayed with her ever since.  She says, “There is something comforting about having a needle in your hand and trying something new.”  Indeed, she states, her grandmother gave her “permission to try anything” that she wanted to learn.   In addition to her familiarity with quilting, knitting, and other needlecrafts, Claudia has also been needle felting for the past few years.   Claudia has experience teaching quilting and crafts classes in a variety of venues, and we are very happy to have her join us here at Quilter's Stash!