President’s Message
Looks to me like it is time to get back into prepping for shows and attending meetings. With that being said, we do have one more social meeting coming up on Tuesday, August 5, 2025 at Sly Fox. This one is great fun! After this meeting, we will get into much more serious business.
REMINDER-REMINDER! Did you remember to sign up for our 75th annual Holiday Fine Art and Craft Festival? This needs to be on your show schedule for Fall. This is a big year for us, and it would be great to see some of our “retired” members. We always need volunteers. What a great way to catch up with some fellow craftsmen by volunteering for an hour to help your Reading-Berks Guild. This is the 80th Anniversary of The Reading-Berks Guild of Craftsmen. What an accomplishment. We are the oldest chapter in the state. This is worth celebrating. Our members keep this guild going.
The 75th Annual Juried Holiday Fine Art and Craft Festival is happening on Saturday, October 25 and Sunday, October 26, 2025, at Kutztown University. YOU are an important part of this festival. Thanks in advance to all our members for your participation.
Another important date for members is our next jury session on Tuesday, September 2, 2025. Don’t forget to get your jury application to our Standards Chairperson, Diane Phalen.
“Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.”— Joshua J. Marine
Your President,
Barry L. Bennecoff
Programs
Hello crafters! It’s time for friends, crafts, pizza, and beverages! Join the Guild at Sly Fox on Knitting Mill Rd in Wyomissing for some camaraderie and catching up. We’d love to hear what you did and where you travelled over the summer. Drinks and food are your responsibility, but the pizza is on us. See you there starting at 6 pm!
Program Chair,
Amy Langman
programs@rbcrafts.org
75th Annual Juried Holiday Fine Art and Craft Festival
It’s never too early to sign up and participate in a great event!
Applications are available on our web site.
Not participating in the show but still want to be involved?
This event thrives thanks to the incredible support of volunteers. We need your help! Whether it’s before, during, or after the show, your time and energy make a real difference—and are truly appreciated.
There are many ways to get involved, and we welcome anyone who wants to lend a hand. Please use the SignUpGenius link to let us know when you’re available.
Sign up to be a volunteer!
Show Chair,
Steve Hunter
festivals@rbcrafts.org
Social Media
As our Social Media team starts to ramp up the postings for the upcoming Holiday Fine Art & Craft Festival for 2025, you will see more postings on Facebook and Instagram regarding this show.
Be sure to send in images of your work to images@rbcrafts.org to be promoted with this show. The preferred image format is JPG or PNG and under 3MB in file size
The better the images, the more chance you will have of your work being used on Facebook and other platforms to promote the festival.
Gary Rosborough,
Social Media Chair
social-media@rbcrafts.org
BCTV
We just recorded “Your Berks Craftsmen” featuring Rebecca, a fiber artist, and Robert Manoogian, and I am proud to say I did pronounce their last name correctly. We opened with a really lovely story of how they met, and how Becky got Robert interested in metal artistry while they were on a date at The Goschenhoppen Folk Festival several years ago. That was just the beginning. Get to know more about your fellow craftsmen. The show will air on Wednesdays at 7:00 PM.
Our 75th Holiday Fine Art and Craft Festival is October 25 and 26, 2025. We are going to need craftsmen to participate in “Your Berks Craftsmen” in our upcoming shows. Episodes of “Your Berks Craftsmen” is a great way to get you, our craftsmen, out there for all to see and meet you. No auditions required! Just say “Yes” when asked; or better yet, let us know you want to be on TV.
Find BCTV on air and online:
Comcast Reading Channel 15
Comcast-Southern Berks Channel 965
Service Electric Channel 19
Both channels are streaming online 24-7 at www.bctv.org
BCTV is available on Roku, search for BCTV Berks – HOW TO VIDE
You Tube Channel
Access Your Berks Craftsmen directly.
Your Host of “Your Berks Craftsmen”,
Kay L. Bennecoff
Standards
The next jury session to become a juried member of the Reading-Berks Guild of Craftsmen will be on September 2, 2025, at the Google Works in Room 325. We currently have four artisans who are seeking juried status. If you are interested in being juried, you must be a member of the Reading Berks Guild of Craftsmen for at least 3 months which is fast approaching on June 3 for this jury session. After that date you will not be eligible until the March 3, 2026. Use this application to apply for jurying.
For our Holiday Show held October 25 & 26, 2025 if you are not a guild member or a guild member who has not been juried, we recommend submitting your work prior to the Holiday Show. Please email 4 images of your work and one image of your booth to standards@rbcrafts.org Please add the email subject line: Holiday Show Jurying. This will help our Standards Committee determine whether your work meets the expectations of the show.
Non-members who are accepted into our show are strongly encouraged to become a member of the Reading-Berks Guild. Chapter membership also includes full membership in the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen.
Please remember that your work must be your original work with no copies of another’s work, commercial kits, assemblages or patterns. Reading-Berks Guild of Craftsmen standards include excellence in craftsmanship, well resolved design, and a unique voice or style.
Standards Chairperson,
Diane Phalen
standards@rbcrafts.org
Website
The Reading-Berks Guild has updated our online member directory!
This directory uses membership information provided by the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen (PGC) through their monthly report.
By default, only members with a website listed in their PGC profile will appear. If you don’t see your name, try unchecking the “Has Website” box at the top of the page to view the full list.
Want your website or social media link to appear?
You’ll need to update your profile on the PGC website.
1. Log in to PGC
2. Go to Member Resources → View/Update Your Profile
3. Click the gear icon and select Edit Profile from the dropdown. Be sure to add your website (or Etsy shop), Instagram, and/or Facebook page link in the appropriate section.
Once your profile is updated, your information should appear on our Guild website within 30 days, or after we receive the next monthly report from the PGC.
Need help?
If you’re having trouble editing your profile, email: membership@pacrafts.
Include your name, chapter, and the information you’d like updated.
Website Chair,
Lisa Short
webmaster@rbcrafts.org
Membership
The State Guild website currently shows that there are 161 members of the Reading-Berks Guild chapter.
Please don’t forget that when joining or renewing your membership for the Guild that you select the Reading-Berks Chapter, so that you can get the extra benefits of our specific guild chapter. Joining is easy and is done through the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen
Membership Chair,
John Paul Warren
membership@rbcrafts.org
Pennsylvania State Guild of Craftsmen
PGC 2nd Annual Online Auction
Items accepted until September 16, 2025 Bidding begins September 23 and ends on Sunday, October 25, 2025 at 5:00 pm.
The success of the 80th Anniversary Auction prompted us to have another!
We are asking for your support by donating items for the auction. Auction items are not limited to handmade art and crafts. We accept social events, teaching/donating workshops, restaurant gift cards, sporting events tickets, activity center gift cards, and personal services to name a few. Donations are not limited to Lancaster area-based products and services. Last year we had bidders from all over the state and outside Pennsylvania too!
With each donated item download and complete the description form and deliver or ship your items along with the completed form to:
PGC at 335 N. Queen Street, Lancaster, PA 17603.
Items will be displayed at the Guild Store and online at the beginning of the auction. 2025 Auction Link
I do have an Auction Request “script” to share if you have time to contact your favorite restaurants, hair salons, etc to help with this fundraiser. Thank you!
PGC – Reading-Berks Guild Representative,
Denise Wilz
Denise@wilzpottery.com
Events
General Meeting (1st Tuesday of Month)
September 2, 2025 from 7 PM at the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts. Check the board for room number.
Historic Schaefferstown:
Harvest Fair on September 13, 2025 from 10 AM – 4 PM and September 14, 2025 from 11:30 AM – 4 PM.
The Festival is held on the beautiful Alexander Schaeffer Farm in Schaefferstown, PA. Please call 717-949-2244 or email Historic Schaefferstown for more information.
Attention Woodworkers
If you are interested in any walnut, cherry, oak, or poplar, please contact Barry at 610-562-7226 for further details.
Newsletter
If you would like to put something in the Newsletter, please contact us at newsletter@rbcrafts.org
Newsletter Editor,
Nancy Vardjan