YAP and YARN

By Don Shilling

Along the way, women knit relationships

Women gather each week to talk and to knit.

She’s my fairy god knitting teacher,” said Lexie D’Amato, 23, of Youngstown. “She’s rescued a lot of my projects.”

D’Amato is not alone. A group of women gathers every Tuesday at Panera Bread in Boardman for a knitting class led by Reichard, 56, of Struthers.

Even though they meet at a restaurant, the most important part of the evening is for Reichard to look over the progress that her students are making on their sweaters, hats and slippers.

Once the stitches are checked and the problems solved, the women can move on to the second-best part of the evening. After all, some of the women have been meeting with Reichard for years and have become friends.

“It’s our Tuesday night yap and yarn night,” said Dawn Damron, 40, of North Jackson.

The evening starts at 5:30 p.m. Between three and 15 women drift in as their schedules permit, and sometimes they stay until the 10 p.m. closing.

“They’re sweeping the floors, and we’re still here,” Damron said.

Five of the women began meeting while Reichard was teaching knitting classes at a local craft store. When that arrangement ended a year and a half ago, Reichard moved the classes to Panera.

“We wanted to start another project and then another one, and we never quit,” Damron said.

Reichard charges $10 per project, which often take four to six weeks. Anyone is invited, and no experience is needed.

“I have full faith in anyone who has the desire,” Reichard said.

She should know. She’s been teaching knitting for a long time.

It all began when she was 9 and her sister took her to the former Strouss’ department store in downtown Youngstown for a knitting lesson. She kept taking classes, and the following year she was teaching other girls at St. Nicholas School in Struthers.

She’s proud to say that three of those four original students are still knitting today.

As an adult, Reichard has taught knitters in her home and at the craft store.

She likes the Panera location best because people can come in whenever they like and there are no restrictions on projects. She starts beginners on simple projects, such scarves and dishcloths. After that, they can move on to whatever they like.

Beverly Patton, 67, of New Castle, Pa., likes to make hats that she donates to women who are undergoing chemotherapy. She belongs to a group of women in New Castle that gathers regularly to crochet, but she also joined Reichard’s group because she always liked the look of knitted items.

She has been so taken with knitting that she hasn’t crocheted in more than a year. She still attends her crochet group, but she knits while the others crochet.

Patton is one of Reichard’s many success stories. The teacher is determined to pass along her knowledge to as many people as she can.

“Knitting is becoming a lost art,” she said.

But knitting isn’t her only passion. She enjoys watching two of her grandchildren, and she cleans five area homes and three businesses. She used to be a radio station manager and advertising sales representative.

Through it all, she has found that knitting, with its rhythmic motion, is soothing.

“A lot of people say they don’t have the time, but this is the most relaxing thing you can do for yourself,” she said.

shilling@vindy.com