Susi Reinink discusses the 2005 OHS Conference in Kingston and planning the 2021 Conference during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Susi Reinink discusses the 2005 OHS Conference in Kingston and planning the 2021 Conference during the Coronavirus pandemic.

July 05, 2021

© Kingston Handloom Weavers and Spinners

Shaelagh Cull

Susi Reinink

Zoom

It's not an official position, but over the years, having be so intensely involved with the Ontario Handweavers and Spinners, I always was able to make people aware, like members of our Guild, aware what the provincial Guild can offer, again, with education mainly and exhibitions. Actually, at this point, we are actually, in the process of organizing the conference. Every two years, the OHS has a conference and I was chairing it together with Roberta McKinney in 2005, at Queen's University here. It was a wonderful conference, it was really a great success and was fun. Our juried exhibition was at the Agnes Etherington [Art Gallery]. So it was quite, quite impressive. It was all new to me to be doing something like that. I can't remember that it really was that much of an effort, all I can't remember is how much fun that was. Indeed, the feedback was wonderful. So this time, over the years, always, again through the OHS. I have been involved with the conferences. Usually I teach seminars or workshops there, too. But also with the organization of the conference itself, especially, of course, when it's in our region, which is every two years over five regions, so every 10 years, basically, that we have to do it. So this year, it was again, the Eastern Region and we already had booked the Ambassador Hotel for the conference and then this COVID started and so we had to make a decision. We already had a down payment for it. And just at the last minute, we decided not to take any chance and withdrew and we got our down payment back. Then it had to be decided, are we going to cancel it this year because of the circumstances or are we going to go virtual? So we decided to go for virtual. So in October, we'll have our conference, virtually. I enjoy a challenge, so I have tried to keep up with it. And in fact, they asked me to give a pre-conference workshop at the conference in double weave, by the way, and it turns on, so I have to demonstrate. So here I am trying to figure out how to do it. But, as I say, it's kind of fun to go with the flow and you always learn. It has huge advantages, actually, because now we can attract people from Australia, from Japan, from, well, the States. Otherwise, it would be impossible for them to attend because, well the travel expenses. And even for Ontario members or participants, no hotel expenses, no meals. It has its advantages too.