The Naughty Knitters and Hookers are looking for a new home. Anyone with ideas to offer can contact them through emailing Staci Renkema.
One knitters spinning project sits on a table. /Whitney Pavlica
Naughty Knitter Vicki takes a break from her project to joke around with the group. /Whitney Pavlica
Sheri helps Kathy fix a part of her project. /Whitney Pavlica
Following the close of Schuler Books & Music on Alpine Avenue, the Naughty Knitters and Hookers found themselves without a place to meet. The knitting and crochet group used to meet there every Friday for knitting and camaraderie.
“We were devastated,” says group member Staci Renkema. “It was hard, because we were like, ‘No! What are we going to do with our Friday nights now?’ There’s just not a lot of locations big enough to fit in comfortably.”
“Our group ranges. It can be as small as two or three, but we’ve had around 12 in our group before. There aren’t a lot of places on Friday nights that will allow groups to come in and sit. We do buys things, a lot of the times we eat or drink, but then we sit there. So, if it’s a busy restaurant, you can’t sit there,” says group member Kathy Renkema.
The group has been meeting for five years at Schuler. The group was formed when the members didn’t fit in with another knitting group and were asked to leave.
“It was suggested that maybe we weren’t the right fit for the group we were in. We were a bit louder than the group we were in at the time. So, we just branched off and shifted to a different day that worked better for all of us. And then we could be ourselves and not have to be super quiet all the time,” says Staci Renkema.
The age range of the group is 14-54 years of age. There are three mother-daughter pairs. The age range brings diversity to the group.
“I’ve been in different knitting groups. To me, this group is the most tolerant and open-minded. We will accept anybody and anybody’s opinion. Some knitting groups are funny. They only talk about yarn and that’s it," says group member Sheri Bowers.
Through the time they spend together knitting, the group has become close friends. Not only knitting, but also planning holiday events together, potlucks and meeting for summer concerts in the park.
The Naughty Knitters and Hookers are currently meeting at a coffee shop, but would like to find a better home. They are looking for a place with good lighting, comfortable chairs, coffee and food. Despite not having a more permanent place to meet, they remain optimistic.
“We’re so supportive of each other and it just doesn’t matter where we are. We’ve been at Schulers for years and they closed and we’re so sad about that. But the important thing is no matter where we go, we’re together and we support each other,” says group member Vicki Lomasney.
To find out more about the group, or to pass on information about a new home to the Naughty Knitters, contact Staci Renkema.
The music appearing in the audio story was created by Kevin MacLeod entitled Light Thought var 1. MacLeod allows his music to be openly used under the Creative Common's license at: Incompetech.com.
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