Painting Halloween and Christmas decorations in early September definitely gives them plenty of time to dry. That's what about a dozen women did last Tuesday in the arts and crafts room at the Lincoln Park Center. Some of them have been coming to the ceramics painting class since it started in the 1980s.
"I've been crafting for years and years here," said Mary Hansen as she worked on a ceramic elf hugging a pumpkin last Tuesday. "In fact, I can't remember how many years exactly. I give all my stuff away. My kids have so much of it now."
"Mary started painting here when she was in her sixties," said Linda Cadotte, who teaches the open workshop class every Tuesday morning. "She discovered she had an incredible artistic ability. She could have been a designer for Hallmark. She free-hands beautiful flowers, makes bowls."
Added Yvonne Terry, working nearby Hansen: "I keep giving my work away for gifts ... This piece will become a snow lady. You can put a candle in the bottom. It should look pretty for Christmas."
The giving spirit is reciprocal between those who participate in programming at the center and those who teach it. Carol Kari has been the coordinator at the center since 2010. She schedules many of the center's activities and oversees volunteers, who, like Cadotte, lead everything from pool games to computer classes to tap dancing lessons. The center's literature states that 1,300 people per month use the facility.
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"I think that people can just be themselves here and do what they love to do," said Kari. "They can create things, bring their talents here and enjoy interaction with each other. It's a very relaxed atmosphere here."
RaeAnn Hasner said she started coming to the crafting group with Hansen when she moved back to Duluth from Floodwood about 5 years ago.
"I feel pretty proud when I finish something," she said. "Linda usually does the facial stuff -- she does the little detail work on the faces which really make them pop out. So, they look pretty cool."
Cadotte said that the ceramics class started back when the building that houses the center, located at 2014 W. Third St., rented apartments. Many of those former residents lacked reliable transportation and relied on recreational opportunities within the building.
Today, there are no apartments in the building. As a result, said Cadotte, the population in craft classes declined. She also attributed the decline to seniors retiring later, adding that when seniors do retire these days, they are healthier than they used to be. So, they choose from a wider variety of both indoor as well as outdoor activities.
Despite those social pulls tugging against higher attendance, the sense of giving still remains strong among the group in the arts and crafts room.
"There is a social aspect to this class," Cadotte said. "The participants make friends here, develop bonds and check on each other if they don't show up to class. They call each other. It goes a lot deeper than just the crafting part of it."
