Handicrafts club marks 50th display
Long serving life member shares stories
Otane Arts & Crafts president Pam Hales welcomed members and guests at the opening of the 50th Annual Queen’s Birthday Exhibition and Sale on the Friday of the long weekend.
The occasion was heralded by a bright, sunny and frosty Otane morning which turned into a fine weekend.
After thanking all the helpers, Pam then introduced guest speaker Betty Moorcock who joined OAC in 1975 and is the organisation’s oldest and longest serving member.
Betty welcomed everyone and remarked how the Otane building that houses the group comes alive every year at exhibition time. She then shared her personal journey as a member for 45 years.
She said the wool group had been a large part of her life. First, she learned to spin, then with increasing skill began to teach others.
Later she became Wool Group leader and over time entered into competitions at local, regional and national levels. Two occasions stand out: in August 1996 Betty says she was deeply honoured when she was invited, along with her daughter, to open her own exhibition. More recently Betty was made Life Member of the OAC.
Betty expressed her gratitude and
thanked everyone for their friendship and support over the years, and with that declared the 50th OAC Exhibition open.
Also at the opening were VIPs Mr and Mrs Trewheeler. Bill Trewheeler is the son of Thurston Trewheeler who founded OAC in the early 1970s.
There was a wide variety of crafts for sale; art, patchwork and embroidery, papercrafts, mosaics, wool and fibre plus plants and preserves.
The Art Room hosted the cafe´ for the first time and the tables with pink gingham tablecloths were a picture, surrounded by original artworks to view while enjoying Devonshire teas and coffees.
Otane Arts & Crafts members would like to thank all the people and
families who supported the exhibition. The next exhibition, planned for Queen’s Birthday 2022, will include a Monday opening.
Find Otane Arts & Crafts’ Facebook page for more details of the art and craft groups.
For those who work during the week, additional sessions are being held:
Patchwork and Embroidery meet twice a month on a Saturday.
Wool and Fibre Group meet weekly on Tuesday evenings.
Scrapbooking and Papercraft meet one Saturday a month.