In shades of the season, an Indiana Aktion Club creates colorful holiday ornaments.
Story and photos by Kasey Jackson
Kiwanian Holly Forville wanders around the room, offering tips to the focused artists seated at round tables. Mostly there’s laughter and chatting. Everyone is attentive. They’ve done this before. And they’re ready to do it again.
The Kiwanis Club of Shelbyville, Indiana, sponsors the Shelbyville VC Aktion Club, and members from both are here today for the annual holiday ornament painting party, in its eighth year.
Forville offers advice because she knows what she’s doing. This ornament project was her idea, after all.
“I love doing ceramics,” she says, “and we were wracking our brains for a new fundraiser, which is hard for any club. The first year was a disaster. But by accident, one of the ornaments got wet and when I was wiping it off, I realized the paint stays in the grooves even when cleaned. So now we have these painting parties, and everyone loves it.”
Kiwanians and Aktion Club members sell the popular ornaments to family and friends, door-to-door and at a local craft fair. Cost: US$5.
“People call and ask where we’ll be set up at the fair,” Forville says. “So now we stay in the same spot each year. We’re easy to find.”
Juleanne Skinner (facing page) is a charter member of the Shelbyville VC Aktion Club. She says she likes to give the ornaments to her sister.
“I love painting them,” she says. “I love all the different colors.”
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