North Shore Bank has a long history of making a difference in our communities — and at times, we’ve emphasized the “making.” For instance, in May 2004, employees at our Ashwaubenon branch crocheted blankets for the Green Bay YWCA’s Teen Parent Center to give to young mothers and their babies.

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As the Green Bay Press-Gazette reported in a front-page feature on the branch’s project, Ashwaubenon employee Carol Schroeder-Puzen got it started after crocheting a bunch of items for her new granddaughter. With yarn and time to spare, she asked her co-workers if they’d be interested in learning to crochet themselves and making blankets for the center.

All seven employees learned from Carol after work, and then worked on their blankets on breaks and at home. “They jumped in with so much enthusiasm,” she told the newspaper.

Perhaps that’s not surprising, since it wasn’t the first time Ashwaubenon team members had gotten crafty together. An item in the Spring 2000 edition of Shorelines reported that “Ashwaubenon staff get together after work to share craft skills and learn something different. They participate in field trips to quilt shows, the botanical gardens, cake-making classes, gourmet cooking.”

Pulaski’s Katie Walters, Mistine Thomson, April Stevenson, and Karen Jach with Bonnie Drzwiecki of Catholic Financial Life (second from left) and quilts they handmade in 2012.

Several years later, Pulaski staffers got written up in Pulaski News for a similar show of goodwill, when they donated more than 150 items to Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin’s cardiac intensive care unit. All of the donated items — which included blankets and quilts, hats, and more — were either handmade or purchased by branch employees. The project was a partnership with insurance organization Catholic Financial Life Chapter 299.

Has your branch or department put their crafting talents to work for a good cause? Let us know about it!