I have been a member of the Green Mountain Rug Hooking Guild since 2015 and stepped up to be the Program Chair/Board member in 2019. In my brief tenure in this role, I have enjoyed meeting the Guild artists who have inspired me in my work and have become friends in my heart. I spent a year planning engaging programs and destination hook-ins for our members before the Covid-19 pandemic caused us to pause to figure out ways that we could still gather and share our rug creations and fellowship with each other.
Soon we were zooming meetings, show and tells, and a fundraising raffle with a zoom reception (on the night that would have been our opening reception for our 20th Hooked in the Mountains show). When the idea of having a virtual rug show at first seemed daunting, enthusiasm quickly caught on. I volunteered at the regional photo shoots and it felt like a slice of normal to be sharing our rugs, our stories and our friendship at a masked distance of 6’! I also volunteered to use my new Covid-19 skills of filming and editing to interview those who were willing to go in front of the lens to tell their stories.
While filming, dealing with social distance, wind, jets and unreliable internet caused challenges and made for many hours of work…it was also a complete joy to spend time talking to my Guild fellows about their inspiration and friendships. This was exactly what I needed in this socially isolated time. I am so thankful to those that agreed to meet with me along with my clunky editing skills. I should note that there is some really hilarious tape that landed on the editing room floor that may have to become a blooper reel one day!