Perhaps you wonder (I always did) about our Friends of the Creche Organization? How it came to be (I knew most of it), or what a Board of Directors does (I did). Working two jobs and limited travel time kept me from finding out. So, in 2008, I reimagined my life and freed up the time to find out.
(our first zoom meeting last spring)
Here's what I found.
Our Friends of the Creche Board are highly motivated people who REALLY love the culture of the Creche. They love collecting. They love encouraging. They love sharing. Most of all, they love the culture of all of that. Indeed, it's like a big family. We have brothers (a few) and sisters (many sisters),. and we stay connected through the year. There is no off switch on our passion for the culture of the creche.
Carol Williams (Mepkin Abbey Creation - Camino shell behind).
Perhaps you've seen our well crafted mission:
Rita Botcher Collection (Olive wood)
Our goals are these:
To learn more about the creche tradition: how it developed, and how it is expressed in our own and other cultures.
To make better known the tradition of the creche.
To serve as a source of information about creches.
To encourage artists to create creches.
To promote creche exhibits.
To establish relationships with creche associations in other countries.
Kathy Cousins Collection (MacDonald's Tartan)
Take any of those bullet points away and it would fall short of what we really are and do.
(Sitka. The base is smoked moose hide; Mary’s hair is Icelandic sheep's wool, her dress is traditional Kuspak, her fur is river otter; Joseph’s hair is dyed river otter, parka is closed with porcupine quills, fur is beaver, harpoon has a porcupine quill tip; Jesus’ fur is sheared beaver and his bed is Icelandic sheep's wool. Made by Ruth A. Holland. Helen Holder)
Focusing on any of these deepens the value and importance of our shared love.
Michele Devitt (carved wood)
Now, perhaps one or more of these goals stands foremost in your own passion. If that is so, I would love to hear from you. However, if they all fit together, as they do for me, perhaps you would like to join our FOTC board.
Alvin Strong (cruise ship creativity - Title "I saw Three Ships)
Here's a little background on what that might mean:
*We meet three times per year (once at our convention, once in August - usually through emails, and a third in the spring).
*We discuss finances (a mundane affair to some, a necessary affair to others)
*We examine in great detail our media (website, Facebook and Creche Herald).
*We calculate our future meetings and conventions (these alternate by year).
*Other items like evlaulations, historical records, correspondence, auctions, and a host of other things a Board usually discusses.
*We study Creche exhibits and ways to introduce our culture to others.
Michael Whalen's collection
Term limits run 3 years with a renewal of 3 additional years. Be prepared to hit the ground running. Emails and questions arise through the year and our President (currently Sydne Yanko-Jongbloed from California) runs it as an organization, not a dictatorship. In short, your opinion matters. We count our Board members to work together.
(Michelle Devitt's collection - see previous blog)
Still reading? Not interested? Fine, but you can still help the cause. Share your passion by inviting others. Talk about FOTC (look it's really Fotc - because FRIENDSHIP is what makes this whole thing work). At least send a link to the website, or gift someone with a membership. Write a blog post (don't know what that is? - ask me!)
Neil Allen
Webmaster Friends of the Creche
Michael Whalen's collection
. Marilynn Gillispie