Board

President: Malcolm Benson-Dyke

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Malcolm Benson-Dyke lives in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada and is a member of the Saskatoon Spinners & Weavers Guild.  He has previously held board positions with his guild and prior to moving to Saskatchewan, he belonged to the Telarana guild in Mesa, AZ.  Malcolm’s working career spanned 38 years with a Canadian Bank and he attended the 2019 Prince George Conference.  He is an officer in two Canadian Airstream Clubs and his fiber interests are multi-shaft weaving and dyeing.

Malcolm began his weaving journey in 2014. He always wanted to weave, but it didn’t happen until he retired. He found a willing and enthusiastic teacher in Mesa, AZ and took his first “Introduction to Weaving” class. The rest as they say is history!

Malcolm’s first real project was a set of huck-lace placemats in three colours. What was he thinking? One of his mottos in life has been “go big or go home”. He certainly has proved that over the years. His first loom (and still his favourite) was a 48” – 12 shaft LeClerc Model M. He subsequently found out it was manufactured the year he was born!

Malcolm has taken many courses from a variety of well-known instructors including Tom Knisley, Rosalie Neilson and Laura Fry. He is currently enrolled in the Olds College Master Weavers program.

Malcolm joined the SSWG in the spring of 2014 and has been actively involved ever since. He has served as Vice-Chair, Chair and now Past-Chair of the Guild. One of Malcolm’s other life mottos is “you get out of an organization what you put into it.” Malcolm and a dedicated group of volunteers were successful in finding the guild a permanent home – their first in 40 years.

Malcolm looks forward to working with ANWG and its member Guilds to promote fibre arts throughout the Region.

2nd Vice President, 2025 Conference Co-Chair:  Deborah Staehle

Arachne Weavers Guild
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Deborah has been an active member of the Arachne Weavers Guild since 2008. She joined the guild to learn how to weave. She has served as Program Chair two years, and presently is the Treasurer for the guild. Deborah also participated on the last two Grant Application Committees for her Guild – Weaving Boot Camp, and Sheep 2 Shawl. This past year Deborah was Arachne’s Weaver for the Washington State Fair Sheep2Shawl Competition. Other Fiber Art interests include: Spinning, Rigid Heddle Weaving, 4/8 Shaft Weaving, and knitting. She attended her first ANWG Conference held in Victoria BC 2017, and could not wait until the next one held in Prince George 2019, and is looking forward to 2023.
Responsibility:  The president is the moderator of board meetings and the Annual Membership Meeting (AMM) each year and helps to coordinate the work of the various board members.
Position held until 2023.

Secretary, 2025 Conference Co-Chair: Bette Nordberg

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Bette Nordberg lives in Puyallup, WA and is an active member of the Moonspinners, Arachne, Tacoma, and Seattle guilds in Washington.  She is helping each of these guilds by volunteering for a variety of positions from President of Moonspinners to programs, website, and social media positions.  Bette is a retired registered Physical Therapist who worked in local area hospitals.  She has written and published 17 books since 1990.  Bette has also volunteered to be conference secretary for the 2025 conference committee being formed in the Puget Sound area.  Her fiber interests are weaving, spinning, and knitting.

Bette Nordberg started life as physical therapist, morphed into a writer, and after finishing her last book, has settled happily into the world of fiber. She spins reluctantly, knits voraciously, and dreams endlessly warps and wefts. She is still attempting to break the world record for most mistakes in a single weaving project. Her weaving guilds are the source of endless inspiration, knowledge, and friendship.

Treasurer: Angelique Penaflor

Seattle Guild
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I started knitting with gusto back in Hawaii in 2012, following in the footsteps of my Dutch grandmother who was a prolific knitter, crocheter, and embroiderer. After moving to Washington in 2014, I attended the Spring Fair in 2017 and saw all these women spinning in the Sheep barn. I was entranced! So I bought myself a used Ashford traditional and after watching YouTube videos spun and spun. At the 2019 Spring Fair I finally worked up the nerve to talk to one of the ladies spinning and I joined the Northwest Regional Spinners Association. Joining the fine group of Area 2050 spinners, I learned a great deal about slowing down, changing my tension and spinning more intentional yarn. Last year, while stuck working and playing at home, I decided to give weaving a try on a borrowed rigid heddle loom, and I was hooked! So now, as part of the Seattle Weaver’s Guild, I hope to continue on my fiber arts journey. Eventually, I also want to attend the Master Spinner program at Olds College, and now that I know about the Master Weaver program, perhaps that too! I have 3 growing children (2 young adult boys and a 13-year-old daughter), a loving and supportive husband and two cutie pie dogs. Besides being crafty, I love to bake, read and can’t wait for my vegetable gardening every year.
Responsibility:  To deposit and disburse ANWG funds, provide financial reports to the board, develop an annual budget and work with a team for periodic audits.
Position held until 2023.

Communications Chair/Newsletter Editor: Sylvia Emard

Portland Handweavers Guild
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Sylvia retired from a career in paralegal-type work for electric utility companies and now indulges her passions for all things textile. She has been sewing since childhood and weaving and dyeing for more than 25 years. Recently she has taught rigid heddle weaving classes and dyeing workshops in and around the Portland area, and edits the newsletter for the Portland Handweavers Guild. She also enjoys reading, cooking, gardening and dancing, as well as volunteering on the occasional paleontology project in the Willamette Valley.
Responsibility: Get information to the member guilds through the ANWG Newsletter; help to provide additional information to guilds about ANWG and its activities through special communications. 
Position held until 2022. 

Education Chair: Rebecca Winter

Handweavers Guild of Boise Valley
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Rebecca is a self-proclaimed color & texture person, who has spent a lot of time learning about the structure of weaving. She holds two Master Weaver Certificates of Excellence from HGA, in Color-and-Weave Stars and in Shadow Weave. She taught as a medical instructor at Stevens-Henager College for 6 years, a position from which she retired in 2019. Weaving, teaching when the students appear, spinning cotton, and bookmaking are now the daily occupations. Fiber is ever-present.
Responsibility: Coordinates ANWG challenge grant program and oversees other educational opportunities and support of education in the local guilds.
Position held until 2022. 

Membership Chair: Linda York

Whidbey Weavers Guild, Peninsula Weavers and Spinners Guild
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I grew up and lived in Northern California until my retirement.  Growing up, my mother taught me to sew, knit, and embroider and my grandmother taught me to crochet and tat.  I learned to weave and spin as a student at Humboldt State University.  When our son was born, I had the opportunity to help start Golden West Saddle Blankets as the weaver.  We produced custom saddle blankets for Western Quarter Horse riders in the show ring.  In addition I taught weaving at the UC Davis Craft Center.  I produced saddle blankets and taught for the next 15 years.  As college costs were looming for our children, I decided I needed to get a “real” job.  I had been a regular library patron consuming books on tape while a production weaver and one day, one of the librarians suggested I apply for a job at the library.  I discovered I loved working in the library and went back to school part time to earn a Library Technician Certificate.  I was an elementary school librarian for 8 years, then moved to the high school as a librarian for another 8 years.  I retired in June, 2015 and we headed North.  I became active in the Whidbey Weavers Guild and the Peninsula Weavers and Spinners Guild.  I enjoy my looms, which include 4- and 8-shaft, pin looms, Inkle looms, tapestry, and rigid heddle; am both a wheel and spindle spinner, and dabble in needle felting a bit.  When not weaving or spinning, I enjoy camping, daily walks in the woods, playing handbells with our church bell choir, and volunteering at our local Marine Science Center.

Responsibility: Collects the annual guild membership dues, keeps the list of Guild Representatives, and Presidents up-to-date, communicates with the individual guild representatives, and reports to the board and the organization on the membership status.
Position held since 2022.

Web Admin: Dan Steves

Portland Handweavers Guild
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Dan weaves in Portland, Oregon, mostly on one of his three rigid heddle looms, but sometimes on a pin loom, or an inkle loom, or an 8 shaft table loom.  The big 4 shaft floor loom is still folded up while he decides where to put it.
Responsibility:  Manage the ANWG website.
Position held since 2021.