The Black Forest Arts and Crafts Guild spring show may have been cancelled because of COVID-19, but Bobbi Nielsen has instead used her creative energies to make masks for the prevention of the virus.Nielsen is the president of the guild, and had to make the hard decision to cancel the show.So, she rallied 35 people to make masks: 33 women and two men. Nielsen said to this date, they have donated 12,000 masks with several hundred ready to donate; she has made 2,157 so far.It all started with a mom and daughter who made masks for nursing homes and 1,100 more for the Colorado Springs Fire Department, Nielsen said. She took over the project, and invited the Black Forest Arts and Crafts Guild, the Grace Community Church sewing group and her crochet and knitting group, Stitchíin and Ditchíin, to help.Nielsen said they made 500 masks for Pikes Peak Hospice & Palliative Care, over 1,000 for Penrose Hospital non-patient contact workers, 200 for the Ft. Carson Fire Department and 450 for The Villas at Sunny Acres in Thornton, Colorado, with plans to make 450 more for the latter. She said they had orders from Peterson Air Force Base and the Navajo nation.ìWeíve mailed masks to about 30 different states,î Nielsen said. ìItís all been by word of mouth and people in our group who have relatives or medical contacts.î She said they try not to compete with people who are selling them, and they use donations to buy more supplies and postage.Nielsen has been involved in the guild for 10 years. She said this year has been challenging as president. ìThere have been some silver linings, though, as I finally have time to sew,î she said. ìIím also getting to know the people in the guild better, as we actually have time to talk one-on-one these days; most of the time weíre too busy getting ready for and doing the shows. Making the masks has been a blessing to me; itís kept me busy during this time.îNielsen is a Colorado native who grew up in Boulder. She married Lance Nielsen, the boy next door, and they were married 35 years. He joined the US Air Force; and, as an A-10 mechanic, they were stationed at Travis AFB in California, in Germany for seven years and in Tucson, Arizona, where he retired in 1997.They moved back to Colorado after he retired to be near her parents, but her parents ended up retiring in Arizona, where her brother lives. ìWe could have just stayed in Arizona,î Nielsen said. ìWe all laugh about it now, but it wasnít funny at the time.î She has lived in Falcon for 25 years; her husband passed away three years ago. ìWe didnít have any children, but lots of children are in my life; I have nieces and nephews and some are coming soon to visit and hang out with their crazy oleí aunt,î she said.Nielsen said she spent 25 years as an executive in Fortune 500 companies. She ran corporate call centers with more than 2,500 employees. She also spent a year as an executive chef for a golf club. Nielsen is semi-retired, working part time at Grace Community Church as the finance manager. She said she hopes to retire in the next few years.ìI have always been a crafter; and, after being laid off 10 years ago, I decided I finally had time to join (the guild), Nielsen said. ìI had gone to the shows for years and always enjoyed them.î She makes fabric microwave bowl protectors, spices with no MSG or fillers; dip mixes, cinnamon rolls, mulling spices and flavored pretzels. She said making spices is her main craft. ìI love to cook; I catered for 40 years and still do private catering,î Nielsen said. She is involved in Vacation Bible School at Grace Community Church and heads up the food truck rallies, which are held in the church parking lot every summer. Nielsen said her big project for the church is the Touch a Truck event in September, where kids can climb on the fire trucks and other big equipment. She is also involved with the Eastern Plains Chamber of Commerce.Nielsen said they meet at her church, and she started out being a host, catering their breakfasts; and eventually became a part of the group.She is excited the guild will have six to eight booths every week at the Backyard Farmers Market, which starts in Black Forest May 23 and runs through Oct. 10. ìItís been great for the guild members because they have an outlet since the show was cancelled,î Nielsen said.ìIíve been creative my entire life. I like to live outside the box, take a chance on something new and travel. My family is the most important part of my life.î
