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Handcrafted jewelry, paintings, pottery, woodworking, fashion accessories and holiday designs will be for sale at the Charity League's annual Showcase of Artisans next weekend.
The showcase is a mix of handmade items by artists, and Christmas decorations made by league members. Five jewelers, two potters, a painter, a portrait artist, a glass artist, woodworker, basket maker and a doll maker are among the artisans.
League members have been meeting since summer to create decorations ranging from wreaths to tabletop Christmas trees to a selection of signature Santas that are around 3 feet tall.
"While we're in the workshop making decorations we get caught up in the spirit of the event because with everything we make we know it will help buy a coat or hat for a child, or a meal," says league member Brenda Rorie.
Just a few days ago, members of the Charity League distributed 1,100 coats for needy children in Charlotte.
It takes big hearts and lots of money to keep the 88-year-old nonprofit's mission of helping out children in our community going.
"All funds we receive from the Showcase of Artisans go directly to purchases of things for the children. It doesn't go to overhead - we don't even own a building and we don't have any staff," Rorie said. "We're an all-volunteer organization."
The league's history dates to 1921, when it started as a support group for St. Peter's Hospital, with members raising funds for parents who couldn't afford their children's hospital bills. Currently, the league's 135 members touch the lives of thousands of children through programs that include after-school enrichment for children in high-crime neighborhoods and a Kindermusik program for patients at Presbyterian Hemby Children's Hospital.
