NEXT MONTHLY MEETING
 October 17, 2024 • 9 AM AZ Time • Hopi Room

GREETINGS!

The arrival of October marks the resurgence of activity at the Studio, where members can explore various pottery art opportunities and engage in a diverse selection of classes, encompassing alternative firing methods. Rekindling friendships is also on the horizon, and the current season's programming promises to thrill and inspire pottery enthusiasts.

GENERAL MEETINGS
Membership meetings will occur monthly now from October to April on the third Thursday at 9:00am in the Hopi Room. October's meeting is Thursday the 17th. 

VOLUNTEER GENERAL MEETING GREETER
The organization acknowledges Ann Funk's diligent work in gathering refreshments, registration, and door prizes for our General Meetings. Ann has stepped back from the meeting coordination role. We thank her for her faithful service to our club. 

REQUESTS FOR GENERAL MEETING GREETER
We seek one or two members to volunteer as Ann's successors and support these efforts. Interested individuals should contact Bob Piper.
Duties include:
• Order and pick up donuts
• Sign members in for meeting
• Raffle door prize
• Replenish napkins, cups, coffee, cream supply when low.
• Bob Piper will coordinate the coffee set up and will bring over the raffle items.

SERVICE HOURS
To ensure our club's continued success, we encourage you to take proactive steps in updating your service hours promptly. Plan, even before you return, and sign up for areas where your ability can make the greatest impact. If training is needed for a volunteer role, please contact its Group Director to schedule a convenient training session. 

2025 LEADERSHIP
Notably, our current Grand Clay Arts Board members, elected for a 2-year term starting January 2024 through December 31, 2025, have chosen to stay on the board. Therefore, an election is not necessary this year.

Have fun in the Studio!

 Nancy@lindenpure.com   

GREETINGS!

Welcome back to all of our seasonal potters. Summer of 2024 was a first for indoor Markets. Our club participated although we had limited space (thus, limited sales). It was a good option for representing our club. There are plans to continue with 2025 Summer Markets on the first Saturday of each month. We held our first outdoor Market in October. We had 5 artists selling in the 100+ degree temps. The October crowd was better than expected.

GEAR UP FOR OUR FALL AND WINTER SALES 
All members are encouraged to participate on the first Saturday of every month. Sign up for requesting to sell is easy- just go to the home page and click on the "Sign up for Sales Events at Grand" Sign up is open from the 1st to the 15th of each month for the following month's event. NOTE that November has two events: monthly Market is on November 2nd and our Grand Fall Fest is November 16th. You are invited to request to sell at either or both events. 

 

A Request to Members...!
When you log your service hours from the website link Log Service Hours, please log your hours in the month they are earned. We appreciate not having to go back in time to put hours into previous months. This causes undo extra work for the volunteer who processes your hours.

HERE ARE SOME ADDITIONAL NOTES ABOUT SERVICE HOURS
• It's okay to total hours for the month and make one entry. However, it's up to you; if it is helpful to make separate entries for each activity, that still works.
• Please be specific about the dates and/or at least the month. We do see entries with dates that don't sync up. For example, making an entry in Aug, and the Date says Sept. (It happens - lol!)
• If you monitor on the spur of the moment (e.g., if someone doesn't show up), and you don't have time to formally sign up on the Monitors' calendar, please state that in the Activity section of the Log Service Hours entry. This keeps us from having to double-check the Monitor sign-up calendar against your log entry.
• If you cannot work your Monitor timeslot, don't forget to cancel your sign-up, "Cancel", from the Monitors' Calendar.

Fall is beginning and so is the return of the snowbirds to Surprise.
Welcome Back!

SERVICE HOURS
When you come back to the studio after a long and busy summer break, you might notice when you swipe your CAM ID card, your name will show up on the computer screen with a yellow box. If this happens, this means you are not in good standing, because you do not have the required number of service hours (12 required service hours for full time members; 9 hours for members who reside in Grand less than 90 days). Members not in good standing are not allowed to use studio glazes, fire pieces, take classes, purchase supplies, or sell pieces in the gallery or at market.

If you want to know how many services hours you have, login to grandclayarts.com and scroll down to Volunteer Reports/Volunteer Reporting. You can run a report showing the number of service hours you have. You should also note when your hours expire so you stay current on your hours.

CAM CARDS
Some of you may have received a new CAM ID card. If you did, you need to log in to your profile on our website and change your CAM number. If the number on your CAM ID card does not match our database, you will not show up as a member. If you have any questions, or need help with changing or checking your number, please contact  membership@grandclayarts.com. 

Snowbirds will be returning in Oct/Nov and the studio will be getting busy. There are a few rules we must follow to keep everyone safe.
Here is a review.

CLEAN FLOORS 
• Clean floors are critical to the safety of members to avoid slipping and injuries.
• Areas must be kept clean where members are walking.
• All spills in Glaze Room, Studio Table area, Wheels, and Entrance area must be cleaned immediately.
• All sprays should be applied outside or if inside, then near the sink area with the appropriate paper or cloth to absorb the overspray. Spray away from the floor onto the paper.

KEEP AISLES CLEAR NEXT TO CUBBIES AND STORAGE RACKS  
• Keep all materials inside your cubby. Do not have items extending out from the front.
• Keep aisles clear near drying racks to avoid accidents.

SLOW DOWN
• There are more people in the club than during the summer, so please take your time moving around to avoid dropped & broken artwork.

WIPE DOWN ALL SURFACES 
• Clean your table and counters after completing your work. This will eliminate harmful chemicals in the air from glaze and dust.

Following these rules will avoid a potential accident involving a hip, back, or head, and a potential visit to the hospital. Let us be SAFE! Thank you for your cooperation! See you all in November!

P.S. ALSO, Friendly Reminder to Sign-up for “Surprise Fire Dept A.E.D. Training Class” when available each month. There are limited spaces so join in ASAP when “The Grand Newsletter” is showing openings for the class.

Busy season is about to start and with this comes the need for more monitors to keep our studio open.

Just a reminder when signing up to monitor you must make sure the early times are filled first.  

Our advanced Alternative Fire program at GCA is again offering new experiences this season. There are some new glazes, new color sample pots and 2 new firing approaches, as well as a brief class that reveals glaze secrets and tips for amazing raku results.

Our firing team (Royal C., Bob P., Jim D., and Jim PW) keeps everything safe and tidy and working smoothly. We always welcome club and community watchers!

Foil Saggar continues to be offered, as well as Splash Obvara, which was a big hit last season. It was crazy fun to toss sugar and spray yeast mixture onto hot pots! We’ll be adding a new method of 1 step Naked Raku, (a bit like Splash Obvara,) as well as experimenting with traditional Copper Matte glaze, which requires a slightly different method of reduction.

Get some WS5 clay and handbuild or throw some shapes, so you can join us in this very special clay experiment. Details and requirements can be found in Class Descriptions.  

Great news! Fall Fest is scheduled for Saturday, November 16th. Once again, Plates of Plenty (POP) will be a part of the event. POP volunteers are looking forward to selling pieces created by members of Grand Clay Arts and donating the proceeds to the the West Valley Community Food Bank.

For members who are back in the studio, write yourself a note to make and donate a piece that can be sold at the November 16th event.  

 grandclayarts.com