BUCHTEL, Ohio — Regional textile supporters will converge 2–5 p.m. Saturday, May 30 on the Hocking Hills Garment Center, at 17645 Bank St., Buchtel, for the Southeast Ohio Fibershed’s Spring 2026 Meetup to celebrate local fiber arts and relaunch efforts in our regional textile industry.
Athens native, Betsy Franjola, returned to the area after working in the garment industry and founded the HHGC. Franjola states, “We believe the future of American manufacturing is not about recreating the old system, but building a new one that is more connected, ethical, and place-based. Fibershed’s focus on regional fiber systems, natural materials, and collaboration across the supply chain reflects so much of what inspires our work every day.”
Southeast Ohio Fibershed, founded in 2021 by Athens fiber artist and business owner Lisa Heinz, provides guidance for development that includes a focus on sustainability, regenerative farming practices, and guidance in regional textile development efforts.
Heinz states, “As a budding non-profit, we focus our efforts on public education about what sustainability means in clothing, household, and other textiles that use grown, or natural, fibers. This means enabling connections between farmers who grow fibers, such as wool or flax, and those who would like to make products from them, which includes manufacturers such as HHGC.”
Activities at the event May 30 will include speakers, fiber artists and fiber arts demonstrations, shearers, information tables, and local sheep for visitors to get to know.
The Southeast Ohio Fibershed, a registered Ohio non-profit, works toward obtaining its status as an IRS 501(c(3) nonprofit by the end of summer 2026. For more information, please attend the meetup or find us on social media and seohiofibershed.org .
