“(Young) gave me the name of her yarn store and I went and got needles and got started,” Gaier said. “I have never stopped.”
Gaier is well-known in the area for her knitting and has donated hundreds of items to non-profits.
“She’s quite the knitter and she is very generous with her knitting,” said Toni Sprinkel who nominated Gaier as a Dayton Daily News Community Gem.
Born in Toledo and moving around to Piqua, Florida and Cincinnati, Gaier said she was always aware of the city of Dayton.
“The people, the opportunity, the future,” Gaier said. “I love Dayton. I’m staying here.”
Gaier moved to Kettering in 2006 and in the same year met Sprinkel.
The two met at a Leadership Dayton retreat, a program through Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce. They were acquainted and have been friends for almost 20 years.
After Leadership Dayton, Gaier was invited to be a board member for We Care Arts, a nonprofit organization with the mission to empower and heal the community through art.
She learned of auctions and fundraisers put on by the nonprofit and offered her knitting items to be placed at a silent auction.
“I made a scarf and they sold it at the silent auction and I was happy about that,” Gaier said. “That’s what got me started.”
Sprinkel said Gaier donated a knitted shawl to a game-day charity event and the person who received it “was so pleased.”
Gaier’s parents were both World War II veterans. Her mother, an Army nurse, and her father, serving on D-Day. She said she’s inspired by them.
“I grew up in a household that really honored responsibility, giving back, taking care of people, and doing good things,” Gaier said. She also included her personal value of the importance of education.
Gaier went on to receive a master of education degree and a doctorate degree.
She has always had an appreciation for veterans. A bigger project for Gaier was knitting 12 lap blankets for veterans at the Dayton VA Medical Center. She said she wrote a personal note with each one and took them to the hospital.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
During colder Ohio months, Gaier said she’s worked to make hats and scarves for the Coats for Kids Drive, a project that collects and distributes warm accessories to those in need in the Miami Valley.
Around the holidays, the Immaculate Conception Church Food Pantry prepares and distributes food baskets. Gaier asked if she could knit washcloths to be placed in the baskets. She said the acceptance and encouragement of the idea was all she needed. Gaier said she guessed she made around 60 washcloths the first year, and up to 90 last year.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
“She works at the food bank, but she donates so much of her time and talent,” Sprinkel said. “It’s amazing.”
She prefers to knit in the morning, with a cup of coffee while watching the news.
“It’s a very lovely way to start your day,” Gaier said.
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