Art quilter and Rhode Island native Veronica "Conaky" Mays is a former high school English teacher who left the profession in 2019 to pursue her passion for quilting. She learned to quilt in 2004 while living in Fairbanks, Alaska.  She is in a zone of peace and joy when sewing stating, "Most often, I'd rather be quilting." Mays is partial to using African-inspired fabric to create pieces that reflect her culture.Her works have been on display locally at the Newport Public Library, Newport Art Museum, Portsmouth Library, Mixed Magic Theatre, Bristol Art Museum and the Barrington Library and nationally, in South Carolina, California, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, Florida, Ohio, and Texas. In addition to displaying and vending, she has donated quilts to Turning Around Ministries, the Kingian Non-Violence committee, Newport Public Education Foundation, Newport Middle Passage, AIDS Quilts Rhode Island, the Harriet Tubman Anniversary committee and more. Mays' background is in Writing (Journalism, poetry, fiction), and Drama. She published her first book of poetry, "Heart Wide Open" in June 2024 - in addition to photos of her art quilts, the book contains quilt-related poems and poetry based on her trip to Accra, Ghana which she describes as life-affirming.