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Sunshine Coast teen textile artist hooked on community service

A textile prodigy with a passion for performance has turned a graduation project into a forward-looking act of compassion.
arts-culture-peyton-oliver
Halfmoon Bay crochet phenom Peyton Oliver surveys the hats and welcome baskets she has accumulated in anticipation of a soon-to-be-built affordable housing facility for women.

A textile prodigy with a passion for performance has turned a graduation project into a forward-looking act of compassion. 

Peyton Oliver — a Grade 12 student at Chatelech Secondary who plans post-secondary studies in speech language pathology — has sung and danced in a half-dozen productions since her stage debut in Brigadoon three years ago (she will also appear in an upcoming production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat).  

But when it came time to tackle her capstone project, a self-directed initiative required for graduation, Oliver saw an opportunity to put others in the spotlight. 

Her pet dog, a German shepherd, had been adopted from a woman who experienced domestic abuse and sought support services. That knowledge shaped Oliver’s decision to find a way to support an initiative of the Sunshine Coast Community Services Society. Last year the group launched its 50 Women campaign to raise $1.5 million for an affordable housing development for women in Sechelt. 

“I just really care about my community and reaching out,” said Oliver. With the support of her mentor, photographer Jennifer Oke, Oliver sketched out a multi-pronged campaign. She would raise $1,000 in donations. She would collect personal items like books and toiletries for 35 welcome baskets, one for each of the apartments in the proposed housing facility. And she would crochet 35 hats, one for each of the baskets. 

There was only one problem: her crocheting experience was limited to a hobbyist kit that her sister bought her for her 15th birthday. It had collected dust amidst her other priorities in the performing arts and regular volunteer work with her school’s Shine On program (supporting learners with developmental, physical, and educational challenges). 

But 35 hats don’t crochet themselves. Oliver tuned in to YouTube video tutorials. She completed her first hat, a generously-proportioned monochrome toque. One by one, she refined her technique while upping her efficiency. Oliver’s latest hat is a tightly-hooked covering that integrates blue and green yarn in a design of her own invention. 

“What’s rewarding is knowing that I made that, and seeing the progress,” Oliver reflected. This year, the school front-loaded capstone assignments into the first half of the year. “I started this way too late, in November, and it takes hours to make each hat.” Although Oliver has raised just over half of her donation target, she has also spent nearly $700 of her own money on supplies for the hats and welcome baskets. 

Oliver inspired her own mentor in the process. “I don’t know a lot of people, regardless of their age, who are able to see a project through like that,” said Oke. “I’m supposed to be her mentor, but I feel like she’s giving so much to the community that she should be mentoring us.” The 50 Women initiative has shaped even her own worldview, increasing her awareness of the variety of reasons that people can find themselves without housing or in need of alternate housing. 

“I’m just thinking about the whole picture a lot more,” added Oke. “It’s become a bigger conversation throughout the community, especially spearheaded by all the women who are part of the group.” 

Oliver will present the results of her project during Chatelech’s capstone presentation event on the afternoon of Jan. 23 (members of the public are invited to attend). She also is seeking additional donations for the 50 Women project, plus contributions of newborn, children’s and women’s clothing (to supplement nine bags she has already collected). Supporters can contact Oliver via her mother’s email at [email protected].