After nearly a year of sewing masks alone I was burned out and ready to retire. Working nearly 18 hour days 7 days a week on pandemic relief for Get PPE had me feeling uninspired. In January I was contacted by the Inaugural Committee about hosting a National Day of Service Event. I decided to put together a National Virtual Sew-A-Thon.

During the event I met a Zoom Room full of amazing humans. On the NDS we crafted and donated more than 17,000 masks and scrub caps for those in need and Crafting Change was born out of the inspiration I took from the humans I sewed alongside of in that Zoom Room! As we saw the need for cloth masks slowing, I knew our skills and talents could be harnessed into something else wonderful! My soul was lit on fire and I knew that pandemic relief was just the beginning. 1.3 million pieces of PPE is the tip of the iceberg. Look out, our sewing machines and crochet hooks and knitting needles and paint brushes and creativity are going to change lives.

You can choose to spend your time and talents anywhere, I'm so glad you choose to spend it here with us! We will continue crafting the change we want to see in the world. We did it one mask at a time, what will it be next? Let's find out together!

As an attorney with the Public Defender’s office, I have a lot of experience dealing with the most vulnerable and have experienced the vast inequities when it comes to allocation of resources. This was only exacerbated by the pandemic. I was so excited to see my mom get involved in mask making and was able to help with making bias tape for her masks. Helping her with this new endeavor is just a natural progression and I’m extremely honored to be able to help local communities around the country.

 My sister Laura and I learned from an early age that it is better to give than receive.  I can’t remember a time when our family wasn’t helping someone.  Be it spending time with families evacuated from hurricanes, or volunteering with service groups.
    Back in 1977 my mom had a devastating cerebral aneurism that resulted in her paralysis on one side.  To help her feel useful and part of the community, I started making security blankets.  While I stitched, I found myself thinking about who might receive our gift of love.  We would take them to the NICU or Ronald McDonald House in San Antonio so she could interact with the children and parents.  I would attach a stamped envelope to the blankets where mothers and children would write to her.  She developed special bonds with these families and even sent a dedicated pen pal to college and nursing school.  And now I send blankets to her children. That experience with mom is what started my love of sewing for others. 
   When Covid mask making had dwindled in earIy 2021,  someone recommended  the National Day of Service Sew-Along.  That day I found a wonderful community of like minded sewists.  I was elated when shortly thereafter, Tiffany started Crafting Change.  And overnight we needed partners to serve.  At the time, I was working with Weld County Foster Care in Greeley, and Pipers Project in Kansas, and soon they were added as two of our first partners. 
    What I love about Crafting Change is not only do we make items for people that need them,  but we also are a dedicated group of crafters that need to be creating for others. 
   I am honored to be part of the Board and will help to continue the amazing success of Crafting Change.  I love that we have so many partners and projects so everyone can find something they enjoy.  Join in on one of our weekly zooms and you will be hooked on the useful tips, and camaraderie. Let’s get Crafting Change!

Carol Grape grew up in Maine and received her BFA in Sculpture (1978) from Maine College of Art & Design (formerly Portland School of Art). From there she went to Kent State University for her MFA in Sculpture (1982) then on to NYC for 6 years. In NYC Grape was an artist’s assist, painted apartments and sets, worked for College Art Association, and Bernice Steinbaum Gallery. While in NY she became very involved with the Women’s Caucus for Art and worked for the National President for 2 years.

In 1989 she and her future husband Mike moved to Northern Kentucky. Grape began working at the Art Academy of Cincinnati in PR then as the Alumni Director before joining the Adjunct Faculty and eventually Gallery Director and Chair of the Master of Art in Art Education (MAAE). Summer program. In 1994 She joined the faculty at Thomas More College as an adjunct and in 1995 She became the Gallery Director.

While in Northern Kentucky Grape showed her work in numerous group exhibitions and two one person shows at the Carnegie Arts Center in Covington. She received a grant from the Kentucky Foundation for Women.

Summer of 2004 Carol and her husband Mike moved to Colorado. Grape started her own successful real estate photography business which she did for 16 years before her retirement at the end of 2021. In 2022 she completed her first art installation (Reverent Boundaries) in many years at Thomas More University in Northern KY.

I have been an Accounting Consultant for more than 20 years. My heart is with serving children. I am the founder of a non profit serving homeless and foster children of Southern Colorado. I started working as an Admin for Million Mask Challenge and then moved to the GetPPE call team. I have sewn hundreds of children's masks and look forward to creative crafts that can further help kids. My favorite part of working with MMC and GetPPE this past year has been meeting new friends all over the country. It is wonderful to sew and craft with a team while helping others.

I have always been creative and crafty. I was a photo album and card maker for 5 years, studied herbalism for 3 years, and getting sustainable when the pandemic hit. Friends and family were needing masks. My sewing skills were ok, so I dusted off my sewing machine, researched the easiest mask design and I was sewing masks! It was a lonely beginning working full-time virtually during the day and then sewing masks for hours into the night. I loved helping people and found a new purpose – helping others.

I wanted to do more to help those in my community. I started sewing pencil pouches for low-income high school students and filling them with basic school supplies. I was making fleece hats for outreach programs and many other small activities. It was great, but still lonely. Then I found Crafting Change by chance, a moment of watching the news on the television, I never watch. There was Tiffany talking about her nonprofit. My husband said – you should check in to that and I did. Best decision ever. After mask making was complete, I found a partner charity that I am passionate about through Crafting Change that I never would have found.

By day, I am a Project Manager for a local financial company. I run my own handmade product business supporting sustainability and kindness. I love making herbal remedies and tea and can’t wait for the garden to fill in with herbs. I am always looking for ways to reform the status quo and offer support. Life is so much better doing the things we love with friends! That is Crafting Change.

"I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples" – Mother Teresa.