Fleece blankets bring a Blacksburg family together

Cartwheels & Dandelions is a collaborative effort among four generations of family. Photo by Mike Shaw | The Burgs

BLACKSBURG – A 93-year old woman sat beneath a vendor tent at Steppin’ Out over the weekend, smiling. She was happy because she found the art of craft once again, and others seemed to enjoy it.

The woman, Blacksburg resident Alvene Scholts, was once an avid knitter before macular degeneration, a medical condition that causes vision loss, made the hobby nearly impossible for her.

“I just like to do this type of stuff, it’s something I grew up with,” Scholts said. “I loved to knit, but the last thing I did I had made a couple of mistakes with it and I thought it was time for me to stop.”

But, with the help of her family, Scholts can once again use her hands to create crafts in the form of colorful, fleece blankets. She’ll try anything once, said daughter Faye Myers.

It began several months ago when Myers and her daughters decided to make children’s dresses to sell at the festival when Scholts made it known that she wanted to be a part of what they were doing.

“When mom heard we were going to have a booth at Steppin’ Out, she said she wanted to do something to contribute,” Myers said.

The blankets were Scholts’ idea, Myers said. Myers and her daughters measure out the material, cut slits on the outer edge of the blankets and Scholts threads the strands through and knots them.

Since January, Scholts had made about 75 blankets, Myers said.

Myers and her daughter Liz Hager believe the blankets represent much more than a craft to Scholts.

Scholts’ husband of 69 years died this past fall. Since then, her family has rallied around her and offered support through her difficult time. The blankets, Hager said, allowed Scholts to see her own value.

“She’s constantly doing something which makes her busy and gives her a sense of accomplishment,” Hager said. “It’s important everyone has a sense of value and a sense of worth no matter what they do.”

Myers said she’s thankful her mother is around to impact the lives of her children and grandchildren.

“There are a lot of good stories and there’s a lot of wisdom and that’s why we have to respect and cherish our senior citizens,” Myers said. “They have so much to impart to us, so much to share.”

The feeling is mutual for Scholts. She loves her family.

“I do as much as I can and I’m very fortunate to have my daughter and granddaughters to help me if I need help,” Scholts said. “It really is a great family and I’m very fortunate.”

The entire family is involved in the new venture, Cartwheels & Dandelions and the four-generations of family work together to produce dresses and blankets to sell on their online shop.

Scholts said she’s just enjoying working with the family and seeing people interested in buying all items available, not just her own blankets. “It’s been a good match, the four of us,” Scholts said.

“We’ve always had a good relationship and what happens to one happens to the other,” Scholts said.

“We like to spread our love around.”

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