Jayleen Torres
Sugar Beet staff reporter
Sewing is the craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with a needle and thread. Elizabeth Alfeo started a program knitting here at GCHS. It is not technically a knitting “club” right now, but it is hosted through the Tinker Lab that is housed in the library. The Tinker Lab is a space for students to explore new activities. Eventually Alfeo would like to meet every week with students who want to knit and learn something new. She had about nine students come to the first lesson and most of them got the basics down that day. Alfeo’s goal as of right now is to get the students to a point where they can knit scarves, which is simple once the studentd learn the basics. They hope to one day be able todonate the scarves and hats they knit to charity.
Alfeo started knitting as a sophomore in high school because she was curious about how it worked. She watched YouTube videos for hours while she was at home or at school during free time and quickly became proficient in kntting. Knitting is a nice hobby to Alfeo because it can be extremely cheap and it is very relaxing once you get the hang of it. She used to take knitting to class with her in college and just knit and listen to her professors. “It is good for people who like to fidget with their hands because you can just do it and not think about it. It also teaches patience. You have to work at making a project and it takes time. Knitting is not about instant gratification. It is definitely a learning tool for patience.” Alfeo said.
Alfeo thinks knitting catches people’s attention because it’s not that common anymore. “It’s something associated with grandmas, not 23 year old history teachers. It’s a unique hobby to have and you actually get something out of it.” Some students that went to the knitting program had no experience kitting and found that it was a great stress-reliever. Orion J. Craig was surprised at how much he liked it. “I never thought I would have seen myself as a boy knitting but actually being able to experience it was cool.”
Jayleen is a health and trade academy sophomore. You may contact her at torresj2@student.gckschools.com.
Garden City High School 