After 17 years, the doors will finally shut Jan. 1

By Lindsey Pizzica Rotolo

In its seventeenth season, it’s hard to believe that this will be the Norfolk Artisan’s Guild’s last Christmas in Norfolk. Virginia “Vee” Kausel, longtime manager of the Guild has finally decided to call it quits. Sacrificing countless hours of her time over the past 17 years, Kausel can no longer continue overseeing the business’s operation.

“Vee’s done an unbelievable job,” says Eve Thew, a longtime volunteer and participating artist at the Guild. “She’s so innovative. I can’t imagine her stopping.” Kausel, and her husband, Ted, who does the bookkeeping, will be stepping down at the end of the year.

“We would love to see someone else volunteer to be the manager,” says Thew, “but since we’re a non-profit, you would have to do it for love.” Much of the Guild’s success can be attributed to Kausel, who has zealously found new artisans to get involved with the Guild each and every month.

The Norfolk Artisan’s Guild was started by Nancy Herzig 17 years ago to give artists a venue in which to sell their work and help them with marketing. Many artists struggle when it comes to promoting their work, so the Guild was a perfect solution to that problem. The Guild has featured the works of hundreds of artists over the years.

Two years ago, the Guild was forced to move from the front of the building at __ Greenwoods Road West, to a space in the rear of the building. “It’s hard to say whether it was the change in the economy or the change in location that affected our numbers,” says Thew, “but we definitely noted a change in sales at that time.”

Unless a new manager is found in the next couple months, the Guild’s doors will close for good on December 31. Richard ___________, who owns the building, has already started marketing the space.

The Guild will be operating as it always has for the last two months it is in business. Guild employees promise that this year’s holiday season will be just as special as it has always been.

The reaction to the closing has saddened many artists and townspeople. Upon hearing the news, Star Childs wrote to Kausel, “I am crushed, but it is probably the right decision. The hours and efforts of so many to make such a unique retail presence and outlet for local artisans did not go unnoticed by me. I will commit to shopping for all of my Christmas presents at the Guild for a final splash.”

It is expected that many Norfolk residents will do the same. The Guild will be open Wednesday through Sunday in November from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and seven days a week, beginning December 1, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.