Local knitters take part in worldwide event

MONONGAHELA – Fans of Wonder Woman or Superman have Free Comic Book Day.
Music buffs who can’t get enough of Bowie or “the Boss” on vinyl have Record Store Day.
And knitters who revel in the creativity and focus they find when they get a pair of knitting needles in their hands have Worldwide Knit in Public Day, which was celebrated Saturday, along with Ballpoint Pen Day, World Doll Day and World Gin Day.
Local knitters marked what has been described as the largest knitter-run event in the world by doing just what the day calls for. A group of knitters, who have called themselves “Purls of Wisdom,” took up residence at the Pennsylvania welcome center on the eastbound side of I-70 just outside Claysville, while a corresponding group working under the moniker “Chess Park Knitwits” worked on socks, finger puppets and other projects in Monongahela’s Chess Park. Both groups were sponsored by the Memory Tree and Yarn Branch shop in Monongahela.
Participants pointed out Worldwide Knit in Public Day was meant to impart a couple of messages – that knitting is not just for grandmothers, and it’s not an exclusively female endeavor. Cathy Waller, a New Eagle resident who was one of about 15 knitters who participated throughout the day in Monongahela, pointed out Rosey Grier, the onetime professional football player, is a high-profile enthusiast for needlepoint.
“I think a lot of us see it as therapy,” Waller pointed out, explaining knitting offers a way to concentrate and phase out the noise of the world. By the same token, it can also offer a means to be productive while taking it easy.
“You have something to show for it,” said Stacey Binns, a Richeyville resident and member of Purls of Wisdom. “You don’t feel so guilty when you’re having a Netflix marathon.”
According to the Worldwide Knit in Public Day website, www.wwkipday.com, events were scheduled in locations as far flung as Taiwan, Tasmania, Iceland, Bermuda and Uruguay.