News Photo by Mike Gonzalez Sue Leavesay, chairperson of the craft and bake sale at Alpena Pines Apartments, holds up her handcrafted dishcloths on Thursday that she will sell on Saturday at the Alpena Pines community room.

ALPENA — The first-ever craft and bake sale at Alpena Pines Apartments starts on Saturday between 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in its community room and lobby.

Thirteen people who live in the apartments have signed up to sell goods such as diamond art, photography, bread, and more.

Sue Leavesay, chairperson of the sale, said that she got the idea after going to different craft and bake sales and thought residents might like to get more money for the holiday season.

“This is our first ever (craft and bake sale) and me and my co-chair, Pat, just decided that we wanted to keep as many seniors as active as possible,” Leavesay said. “There’s a lot of people here that are crafty and either they do crafts or bake, which, to me, is a craft as well. And so, why don’t we try to make a little bit of money for the holidays?”

When residents heard about the idea to hold a sale, Leavesay said they soon became excited and thrilled.

Mary Jo Watson, another resident of Alpena Pines Apartment, is selling greeting cards, magnets, and calendars with her photography on them. She previously sold items like this when she lived in Indiana and California.

“I retired and moved up here, closer to my kids, and there’s not much to do but go out every day and explore Alpena,” Watson said. “So then my daughter, she does artwork, said, ‘Mom, do your photography,’ and I thought maybe not. But people on Facebook comment and stuff, so I thought why not? I mean, I used to put my photos in shops in San Diego.”

Leavesay has attended craft shows and even participated in other shows, and thought others around here would think this is a fun opportunity.

To her, craft shows are a great place to learn more about new craft ideas and what she can work on as a later project.

“To me, it’s the enjoyment of creating, but also it’s very relaxing to me,” Leavesay said. “I can sit there and tattered crochet and watch TV. And when I go to craft shows, I’m getting ideas about things because, for me, All I have to do is look at an item and I can pretty much do that.”

Leavesay hopes to plan another craft and bake show at the apartments for next December.