[1] On top of the economic hardship faced by most Gee's Bend community members, Lutisha Pettway experienced personal difficulties that compounded her struggles.
After that, Lutisha moved to Mobile, Alabama where she worked as a domestic attendant for white families.
This substantial increase in pay allowed here to send money to her father in Gee's Bend to counter child care costs for her nine children, including her son with Down Syndrome.
She worked in Mobile for six and a half years, and she returned to Gee's Bend when her father fell ill. After he died, he left his land to Lutisha's brother Yancy.
Her quilts were a necessity to keep her children warm during the winter and were mostly made of repurposed work clothes.