On a street at the center of Midtown Kingston’s revival sits a gem: The Everette Hodge Community Center, (more affectionately known as “The Hodge”) named after Everette Hodge, Sr., (1911-1991) a notable Kingston resident and civil rights leader, community activist, and mentor, who served as President of the Ulster County N.A.A.C.P. chapter for 29 years, and member of the Kingston Lions Club for 17 years. The Mission of the Everette Hodge Center “is to provide a safe and supportive environment for the Kingston community through educational, environmental, youth and community programs and health and human services.” This immediately inviting place parades kids’ art on the walls, and offers all kinds of workshops and afterschool programs for the community, including the Handmade Reusable Bag Workshop that Hudson Valley Current and Circle Creative Collective shared this past October.

Circle invited folks of all ages to join us there and learn to upcycle old tee shirts, clothes and discarded fabrics- transforming them into one-of-a-kind bags that happened to also celebrate the plastic bag ban or BYOBag Law recently passed in Ulster County. Kids and adults with a range of sewing experience gathered to learn or share skills like hand-stitching, embroidery and sewing machine basics.

The energy in the room was abuzz, everyone immediately engaged in choosing their materials, cutting patterns, and navigating mostly new acquired skills. Intergenerational, intercultural, Circle’s offerings are always much more than a mere “class” but rather a beautiful reflection of our common desire to create, and the importance of a diverse and inclusive community. Each person moved joyfully between “stations,” bringing their disparate pieces of fabric together to form what would soon become a unique bag made with their own two hands.

Along the way, questions were dashed across tables like, “Do I pin this along here?” “Can you please pass the scissors?” “Can I use the next sewing machine?” “How do I thread the bobbin?” Needles jammed or broke, a strap was sewn backwards, some stitches may have been clumsy, but by the end, every child and adult proudly paraded the bag they had created, thanks to the patient and encouraging help of some new friends. So each bag holds all that too, the memory of creating, of overcoming clumsiness and trepidation, as well as the silent stories of who may have woven, or dyed, or even run the machines to form the fabric, or wore the skirt that then became part of a bags side panels and straps, the importance of being mindful of our earth by using sustainable and upcycled materials, and the connectedness so palpable in the room that day as we sewed and learned together.

Thank you again to the Hodge Community Center for opening their space to us, and to The Hudson Valley Current’s new project: Satisfy Hunger for providing the delicious, nutritious, and bountiful food offerings!

Everette Hodge Community Center is owned by the City of Kingston and operated through a cooperative arrangement with the City of Kingston Parks and Recreation Department and Family of Woodstock, Inc. The Hodge Center hosts a popular drop-in after school program September-June each year. The program includes homework help, healthy meals, recreation and skill building activities. All school age children are welcome to attend.

Location: 15 Franklin Street, Kingston, NY

Programmatic Questions: 845-331-9683

Facility Questions: 845-331-1682

Not Your Ordinary Bag