With delicate precision and patience, junior Angelina Tuang weaves her crochet needle up and down, focusing on fastening a colorful beanie from a long string of yarn in a long five-hour process. Although some may find this time-consuming and labor-intensive, Tuang knows her work will create lasting happiness, making it well worth the effort.
Tuang donates crocheted clothing and toys to Operation Gratitude, which aims to provide care packages to first responders, military families and children with serving parents. With an opportunity to contribute more through Walnut High School, she created the Crochet Club where she works with and teaches others how to crochet while giving mystery projects to experienced crocheters to donate.
“We make beanies and other crocheted goods, and there’s something called Tiny Heroes, where we crochet miniature firefighters or police officers for the kids to comfort them as they miss their parents,” Tuang said.
When learning how to crochet for the first time, Tuang taught herself through trial and error, using tutorials and YouTube videos to learn basic patterns and stitches. Now, four years later, she finds herself positively impacting families in need through her favorite hobby. Tuang started giving her pieces to close family members and friends but later turned her passion into generous donations that led to something bigger.
“Seeing their faces light up when they receive [my crocheted work] brings me so much joy, which motivated me to donate to organizations,” Tuang said.
To begin a crocheted piece, Tuang starts by creating a slip knot and then loops the yarn into a circle. She uses two fingers to pull the string into the loop and then pulls both ends together. She then moves on to make a long chain, a string of yarn knotted to create a V pattern by using her crocheting needle to repeat a pattern of movement of weaving it through. Depending on the creation she wants, Tuang uses different methods and changes the pattern of knots and designs to finish.
“[Tuang] is a good leader because she takes charge of everything and talks to everyone before making a decision. She takes everyone’s input and gets things ready for the organization a couple of days before the next meeting” Crochet Club vice president sophomore Brianna Alaniz said.
From the beginning of a hobby to creating a club with a purpose, Tuang is proud of her accomplishments and the positive impact she has had on multiple lives and families. However, Tuang is far from done. She hopes Operation Gratitude is the first of many collaborations with other organizations.
“Crocheting is a personal and special thing for me, and so using my hobby to help others is something I find really rewarding,” Tuang said.
