‘Crochetmas Tree’ created by Berea community
Written by G Njuguna on December 21, 2021
At the corner of Chestnut and Broadway sits a crocheted holiday wonder. Piece by piece, a special tree has come together in downtown Berea made of some 900 crocheted granny squares, the 12-foot-high tree has been a labor of love in the works since February.
“There were young people that worked on it, you know people who had never crocheted before,” said Joy Gritton.
The idea came about last January when Betsy Whaley saw a version of the crocheted tree in a picture from New Zealand. She reached out to someone in the small town there to get details. She says in addition to building community, this project gives people a creative outlet during a time when there’s a lot of hard stuff happening in our country.
Berea community members take time to attach the crocheted granny squares to the metal frame. Courtesy Betsy Whaley
From fundraising to crocheting in groups or individually at home, people from all walks of life have had a hand in bringing this creation to fruition. Creating community in a time it’s been hard to come by, which was the goal.
Estridge said, “I’m happy that it’s done, and I’m excited that so many people could get together and work on it.”
Courtesy: Berea Arts Council
