Greensburg knitting guild joins friendships together

Linda Kruel is hoping for a resurgence of her craft.

“Crocheting has made such a big comeback; we can only hope the same for knitting,” said Kruel, president of the Golden Dome Knitting Guild based in Greensburg.

Spurred on during the covid pandemic, “Grandmacore” — the term for a popular lifestyle and aesthetic trend that encapsulates the charm, simplicity and comforting coziness of a grandmother’s home — has been on the rise in the last several years among young people in their early and mid 20s. Many who subscribe to the look — which can include vintage cardigans and eyeglass chains — take up crocheting and sometimes knitting.

“We’re constantly seeing crochet bags and hats,” said guild Vice President Lorraine Hoffman of Greensburg. “It’s really cute and makes me happy when I see them; there is just such a large crochet and knitting community everywhere.”

No one seems to know when the Golden Dome Knitting Guild was first created or how it got its name, but the guild has been bringing together people of all knitting backgrounds for decades to create a larger sense of community.

“I would say the group has been around at least 30 years,” said Kruel, who has been the guild’s president for the last eight years. “One of the original members is still a member … she’s in her late 90s, so she doesn’t really come often, but we still hear from her and she is still knitting away.”

Kruel joined the guild within its first couple of years because her kids were grown and her husband had his own hobbies.

“I learned how to knit with my mom when I was in second grade,” Kruel said. “I wanted to be a part of something too, so I picked it up again … I even belong to a knitting guild in Ligonier, too, because I love it so much.”

The guild has 19 members of various ages and has had about three to four newcomers attend over the last few months. Hoffman said about half of the members know how to crochet as well. Each meeting has an agenda where more experienced members teach attendees a certain knitting skill.

At the beginning of each meeting, members show what they have been working on at home.

“We have ‘show and share,’ and it’s one of my favorite things,” Kruel said. “It is great to see others learning and growing outside of our meetings, and there is just always something new to learn from each other, whether it’s a new store in the area that has good yarn or even new techniques and patterns.”

Hoffman agrees that the community built within and outside of the guild is always teaching her new things.

“Knitting is like a worldwide fraternity,” Hoffman said. “If I see something knitted at the airport or the grocery store, we can have a five-hour conversation. … There is always someone better than you and something to learn, and by helping each other, that is how we pay it forward.”

The guild is not exclusive to women. There is currently one male member.

“Ray (Green) is amazing,” Hoffman said. “He’s in his mid-40s with long hair and wears the sweaters he makes when he rides his motorcycle… He picked it [knitting] up so quick, and we just love him.”

Ten-year member Judy Scheeren learned how to make socks through the guild and now teaches others how to make them.

“Socks are my favorite things to make,” she said. “I give them out as gifts, but I of course wear my favorites.”

She has been knitting since she was in eighth grade and her love for the activity has grown over time.

“I now have a closet full of knitting stuff,” Scheeren said. “I can work on up to four projects at a time of my own, besides what I make through the guild.”

Longtime member Michaelene Uhall has led one of the guild’s main efforts for several years, which is making caps for those undergoing chemotherapy.

“I have easily made over 100 chemo caps,” Uhall said. “I am constantly working on them.”

The guild also makes winter packages for area charities which include a hat, scarf and pair of gloves. They also send boxes of baby booties to local hospitals.

“We try to do what we can for the community,” Hoffman said. “And it’s just fun because we are all friends and talk outside of the guild.”

The guild meets every third Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. at Trinity United Church of Christ, 139 N. Main St., Greensburg. To become a member, contact Hoffman at lorrainegaryh@aol.com.