Ideas into Action: Sparking Creativity in community

I have done a lot of things in my life. I’ve had many jobs. There have been times when I’ve wondered what am I doing and where am I going? Not to get all existential here, but I’m sure we’ve all asked ourselves what our purpose is. I have a chance to use the culmination of my skills to embark on a new journey. Now, I have always been involved in the arts in one discipline or another and recently, I have had the opportunity to share my love of the arts with a special community. That community is my local Assisted Living Center.

During this Covid pandemic, the Senior Citizens who stay at the assisted living center in my community have been under a lot of stress. They have been through locked downs and quarantines for nearly two years, and are sometimes not able to see friends and family to some degree. Now I can’t speak for everyone but this pandemic has taken its toll on all of us physically and emotionally. At this time the Seniors are able to do normal activities by wearing a mask. I had an idea I hoped would boost morale by creating a crochet group for the seniors. I asked the group if they would be interested in learning how to crochet. I was surprised to see so many said yes. Many of them said they didn’t know how to crochet. I said, “No problem! I’ll teach you!” Now I had to make a plan and a proposal to get this activity started.

One of my goals was to get the Seniors out of their rooms and to be with others for an hour. Being sedentary is no good for anyone. The Crochet Corner, that’s what we call our group, is for everyone and every skill level. If they want to stop in to say “hi” or chat, that’s cool too. Get up, get out and create. That’s the mission statement. The plan was solid. Next, how often do we meet? After a brief survey, the majority of them said weekly. Now I have all the information to plan an activity that will be held once a week at the assisted living center for all to come and crochet and create.

Before the first meeting, I needed to gather up some supplies. I had a ton of extra yarn from projects I had finished. I also got yarn from the assisted living center. I needed hooks. I found some big chunky hooks sizes I, J, K, L, M these would be great for arthritic hands. I also brought some of my circular knitting looms in case crocheting hurt their hands.

In the first meeting, I had about five ladies. (Some forgot what day it was on, someone thought it was canceled, and others went on a trip to the Walmart.) But we talked about our experiences with yarn, projects they want to make, and I taught the newbies how to make a slip knot, chain stitch, and single crochet. The two very experienced crocheters picked up a pattern and went to town. One lady tried to use the chunky crochet hook and said her hands hurt, so I switched her to a knitting loom and she said that she could do that. So there we were, crocheting and chatting. We had a great time. As the group grows and our skills, I hope we’ll be able to give back to the community by making hats and gloves and blankets, etc.

Although the Crochet Corner is relatively new, I hope the mission statement is met at every meeting. Get up, get out, and create. Seeing my new students having fun and enjoying themselves makes me happy. If you have any comments or questions, please leave a note. Thank you for all of your likes and subscribes.

Artfully yours,

Andi