We have just returned from spending a few days in the highlands of north Georgia with the Cottage Girls Plus a Few near Blairesville, GA. The hospitality at Gail’s was amazing and the food was even better! Aside from a few thunderstorms, the weather was good, albeit quite hot. There were lots of nice Nantucket baskets made and a few deer and raccoons seen. We even had a little surprise when we found out that the TBA had moved their annual event to one week after the date we were holding for it in our calendars! So now we have an extra week to goof off back home with the family and Cooper. It is not often we have a free week with everything all ready for the next event. It is almost like being really retired……I could get used to this…..
Reminder - August 1st, 2016 is the early deadline for Christmas orders. We will guarantee delivery in time for the holidays for any order we get by August 1, 2016. Later orders will be filled on a 1st come-1st served basis until 12/15/16. December 15, 2016 will be our final shipping date for the 2016 Holidays. HNCB will be closed for Vacation from December 15, 2016 until January3, 2016.
And now for the Second Part in the Series of Profiles about HNCB, Part I: Joni Dee Thompson and I both grew up in the small town of North Augusta, SC. Joni was a Townie (her faily having been in North Augusta for generations, and I was a southerner by birth but raised by Yankees - my parents moved to NA for my Dad’s jib at the Savannah River Plant). We met in March 1970 and have been going steady ever since. Along about that time, Joni said something to the effect, “If you stick with me, your life will not be dull and boring”. Well, while I have often wished for just a little bit of dull and boring, it has definitely been an exciting 46 years! We did a lot of swimming in the river, went on a lot of church youth trips to places like Maggie Valley, NC, and graduated fro High School in 1973 and 1974, respectively. While I was in my first year at Clemson, Joni was finishing her senior year of high school. Since she only lacked a couple of hours to graduate, she had plenty of free time on her hands. That is probably what lead to her getting in trouble with her father, who saw her being dangled from the railroad trestle overpass by a couple of football players, so that she could tie down an upcoming game banner (when she was supposed to be home in bed).
We married in August 1976, both graduated from Clemson in 1977 (Joni a semester early in education and me a semester late in Forestry), I earned an MS in Entomology in 1980, we moved to Athens, GA, reared two children, I earned a Phd in 1984, Joni-Dee taught elementary school at South Jackson Elementary School, I post-doced for 3 years, Joni sold Tupperware (climbing up to Manager so she could get a free car) and when I finally got a career-level job offer, we moved to San Jose, CA for my Job at Stauffer Chemical Company, who merged with ICI, and we moved to Goldsboro, NC for me to work at the field station, and in 1991, we moved to a new field station in Rocky Mount, NC.
My manager’s wife, Joyce Morgan (anyone who enjoys Joni’s classes should feel indebted to Joyce Morgan), called Joni one day in 1992 and said, “Joni, I signed up for a chair-caning class and signed you up for a basket making class, we start next week”. And so, Joni ended up as one of three students in a community college basket class taught by a little-old-eighty-something year old lady. Since the other two students had been in every class ever taught there, and already knew how to make all of the all the baskets, and were only there to socialize, Joni had the benefit of about 120 years combined basket weaving experience. She also learned some of the dirtiest jokes I have ever heard from those three nice little old ladies! A lifelong passion was born. I have often mused over how much money can actually be invested in a life-long passion……That moment when Joyce called and signed Joni up is the reason why you can’t swing a dead cat in our house without hitting a basket, and the first reason Joni is teaching baskets today. Joni started teaching some classes before we left Rocky Mount in 1993, and had already placed some baskets in the Aiken County Historical Society gift shop (see the blog about my Mom).
We moved to Dover, DE in 1993 due to yet another job transfer for me, followed by a corporate name change (Zeneca) and merger (Astra-Zeneca). We turned the attic into a basket studio and Joni once again started teaching classes. I think in those days, there were 2 classes a day, 2 or 3 days a week. Dover is where she met Denise Bendelewski (they went on to form the Woodland Retreat) and many other life-long baskets friends. Joni worked with them to start the Delaware Basket Makers Association in the 1990’s.
Joni’s college degree is in Education, K-12 with an emphasis in Special Education. Whenever her father (Harold Thompson) joked with her about earning a college degree and now she is just teaching baskets, I would remind him that she uses her education degree every day. A lot of people know how to make baskets, but not everyone has the skills to convey their knowledge to others so that they can know how to do it for themselves. I have often reminded Joni too, that her emphasis in Special Education had come in handy in the basket world…..just kidding….
Joni really enjoyed teaching at the house every week, but she was starting to hope for more. She began wanting to go to conventions outside of DE, such as the NCBA and maybe, just possibly teaching at one, and even did teach at a few. The opportunity really took off, however, after yet another corporate merger (between Zeneca and Novartis to form Syngenta) and our move to Greensboro, NC)….but that will have to wait for part II.
Remember, its a beautiful day, don't let it slip away....
Dave Ross
0 Comments