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Chapter Champs: Happily Hooked on Crochet Club Chapter of CGOA


Chapter Champs
Interview by Gwen Blakley Kinser
Fourth in a series of interviews with inspiring CGOA chapter members:
Grace Aquila, President
Happily Hooked on Crochet Chapter of CGOA

GBK: Your chapter was started in 2001 by Dee Stanziano. Were you involved at that time in getting the chapter going also?
Grace: I found the group through a co-worker about a year into its creation. Loved the people and getting together with them and crocheting.
Dee: We were officially recognized as a Chapter in October 2001, right after 9/11. At that time, to start a Chapter, five CGOA members were required. The founders are: Hilda Nichols (deceased), Ruth Arbitelle (deceased), Ruth Young, Kay Perna, and myself.  While I have returned to college and am still recovering from an arm injury, I’m still involved with the Chapter and act as co-Vice President with Nancy Smith. Ruth Young, our oldest member (and forever ‘young’) is one of our most active members, crocheting many items for our various charity drives. Grace Aquila is our President (we tell her “for life!”) and does an outstanding job; along with Diane George who acts as our Secretary and our Treasurer.
Nancy: No, it was going pretty strong by the time I found them through doing a computer search for groups in my area

GBK: How long have you been the President of your chapter?
Grace: I believe since the beginning of 2007.

GBK: I remember being a guest teacher for you chapter a long time ago. It was a very enthusiastic chapter and has been very active as well in the community and nationally. To what do you attribute this willingness to reach out and to promote crochet and CGOA?
Grace: The love of the art of crochet, meeting new people, knowing we are spreading the art, seeing newbies master it, seeing their creations. Knowing the CGOA is there for the crocheters, sharing the art, bringing people together for the art.
Dee: The horrific day of 9/11, being so close to NYC, helped us decide that being active in our local community was a must for our Chapter. By the time we were formally recognized as a Chapter, many of our local charities were seeing a severe decrease in needed donations as people were focusing organizations aiding those affected by 9/11. Our Salvation Army was in dire need of help; at the time, they served some 200 families. We have been helping them since 2002.We also crochet for the “Hats from the Heart” campaign to help both the Chemotherapy and Radiation departments of the local hospital. At any time we may have a member bring our attention to a new charity. I know of no larger hearts than those of my local Chapter. They are truly amazing, giving people!! 

Nancy: Our group is made up of some pretty generous women!  We all love to crochet, and it’s fun to have places/people to whom we can donate our projects.

GBK: Nancy Smith, the Librarian for your chapter, did a fantastic job as Chairperson for the #chainlink2018 Chapter Challenge!. Did other members of your chapter get involved with this committee?
Nancy: Thanks, Gwen! (blush)
Grace: Our biggest effort was encouraging our members to make hats and finding yarn and patterns to use. for the challenge. A few of our members are cancer survivors, so this Challenge was close to home for us.
Dee: Yes. Deb Seda-Testut, Andrea Giattini, and I helped with various administrative duties, and the Chapter enjoyed participating in the overall Challenge.

GBK: How did your chapter grow a library; and will you tell us how it benefits members?
Nancy: I store the library at my house, and I have a “catalog” listing all that we have.  We meet monthly, and members are free to check out an item at one meeting, then bring it back at the next one.
Grace: Resources like our own members, tag sales, library sales are a great source of donations.  We know money can be a challenge to some members and some books aren’t readily available at local libraries or for sale on store shelves, such as Modular Crochet, a classic, out-of-print books This is our way of helping each other learn and teach.

GBK: How long have you been a CGOA member?
Grace: Truthfully, not sure, maybe 10 or 12 years, or more. I learned of the CGOA from Dee and the HHCC members.
Dee: I have been a CGOA member since 2001.
Nancy: Oh my!  I had to look it up.  It’s been 10 years for me this year!!!

GBK: What have you personally gained from your CGOA/Chapter membership? 
Grace: Knowledge; I love the way it is shared. I’ve met great people, designers, creators, crocheters; and the Crochet! Magazine is a big perk that I love!!!!
Dee: I think hooks & hands down, it is the friendships and the shared experiences that have enriched my life. The chapter has existed for 17 years; and that’s a whole ’lotta wonderfulness to think back upon!!   
Nancy: I’ve met so many great women that I call “friends” in my chapter; and I have had great “adventures” at 7 conferences in the last 10 years.  I’ve learned new techniques from fantastic teachers and each year I meet new people who feel like family I hate to see conference week end because I know I won’t see most of them again until the next conference!


GBK: Does your chapter encourage members to join CGOA, nationally?
Grace: Yes, we have a FB page for the group, and hope to encourage membership by sharing the activities of both our chapter and those of CGOA in the hopes that the information travels far and wide! 
Dee: Always! ... and not just our members; we also encourage people to join when we crochet-in-public, and when we demonstrate at Connecticut Day at the Eastern States Exposition in Massachusetts.

GBK: How many members are in your chapter? Does the number remain steady?
Grace: We have around 20 members attending regularly. And we welcome visitors to check us out. No matter their ability, they learn from us, and we learn from them as well.
Dee: And when a member returns to us after a long hiatus, we celebrate that because it’s like a reunion with a dear friend. In fact, when we were deciding on our Chapter’s official colors, friendship was important for us to emphasize; our colors are Purple, Gold and Silver. Purple, for our Passion for Crochet. Silver and Gold: make new friends but keep the old.

GBK: Do you have chapter dues?  
Grace: Yes, $18 a year, with a bonus to the member of cutting the dues in half, $9, if they join the CGOA! The funds are used to cover the minor expenses we have, newsletters, meeting agendas, basic how to sheets when we do demos, etc.
Dee: Our Chapter funds paid for the supplies for our “to dye for” meeting. In April we have the RAMM drawing. This is the “Ruth Arbitelle Memorial Membership” in memory of one of our founders. The winner gets a free 1-year membership to the HHCC. We have not decided yet how we will honor the memory of Hilda who recently passed away.


GBK: What are some of the most popular chapter activities among your members?
Grace: Always ready to learn new stitches. We make our own challenges during the year. With the permission of the Danbury Library, we make a display at the library celebrating March Crochet Month. This year our theme was “To Dye For”, cotton yarn and dyes were given to members, we learned to dye the fiber at an earlier meeting, then their challenge was to design, create something with it. We meet once a year for a crochet in public, a lot of fun talking and showing anyone that stops, wants to watch, learn and is curious! 
Dee: Aside from our monthly meetings, we know some of our members want to gather outside of the single Sunday gathering time, or that they can’t attend the monthly meeting for whatever reason. We also know that there are guests who would like to “pre-meet” some members to see if we’re the right fit for them. This is why we have the “Coffee, Crochet & Chat” sessions on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Wednesday mornings at our local Panera’s (located in Brookfield, CT). Anyone can come pull up a chair and share a project they’re working on, a new yarn or stitch they’re enjoying, or want to catch up on the latest news related to the Chapter and the yarn industry. (Plus, Panera makes a great cup of coffee!)

GBK: Have you volunteered for CGOA on the national level? What has been gratifying about any of the volunteering you have done?
Grace: Although I have not, I am very proud of our members have done so.
Dee: For 8 years I was the Email Correspondent for CGOA. I really enjoyed my role in to figure out where pattern misunderstandings were happening and then positive feedback back that my explanations helped. I have also helped in smaller roles at Chain Link Conferences I’ve attended. These one-time efforts are a great way to get started.
Nancy: I’ve gotten involved in the last four conferences I’ve attended, and even more so this year. I’ve had a good time doing it!

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