Written by Eli Latham, Translated by Iwan Thomas
February 20th marked the beginning of RAG week for Aber Crafts, a society established at the beginning of this academic year. The society aims to encourage creativity and provide students with a relaxed environment in which they can try a new hobby or work on their own projects. As a newer and smaller society, Aber Crafts would have faced difficulties in raising money through one or two major events, so they decided to run various events throughout the week. The money from each event would go to a different charity agreed upon and voted for by both the committee and society members.
The week began with a craft and bake sale for the charity Action for M.E. on Monday afternoon. Birte – the treasurer for Aber Crafts – recommended the charity. The society ran the craft and bake sale on the first day in an attempt to spread word about the week’s later events, but the sale actually became one of its most successful events. A bake sale is the classic fundraising activity, and Aber Crafts put their own thematic spin on it. Many baked and crafted goods were donated and sold, from ginger cakes and banana bread to crocheted pouches and pins. £99 was raised for Action for M.E. and many raffle tickets were sold.
The second event, ‘Market for Mind’, ran on Tuesday. Many local crafters and some members of Aber Crafts came to sell their goods at the event. Sellers raised money by paying to have their own stalls, allowing them a space to share their work with the student community and meet potential customers whilst raising money for Mind.org.uk. The president of Aber Crafts chose Mind.org.uk, finding it appropriate to raise money for such an important mental health charity, as the society itself focuses on boosting mental health by creating a relaxing environment for its members. Aber Crafts raised £132 for Mind.org.uk and sold even more raffle tickets at the event. The society is planning to run a similar event after easter, as many sellers said they had a great time and would love for the society to run another similar event. Ashton, who sold all sorts of crafts such as dice bags and little mothman plushies, said: ‘I really enjoyed doing the craft fair - talking to cool crafty people both on the stalls and coming to visit, seeing all the things people make (and spending the money I make at the market!) was really cool, especially as it was for charity. [The committee] did a really good job putting everything together!’
The third event ran on Thursday. It was a collaborative event with the Taskmaster society, in which raffle tickets were given as prizes to those who completed challenges set by TaskSoc. The money raised from this event went to Wales Air Ambulance. Though it was a much smaller event and it raised less money than the previous couple, those who attended still had fun, especially spending a lot of time playing games in the “Jackbox corner”.
The final event was the Quiz Night, raising money for Stonewall - an anonymous recommendation. The quiz consisted of questions decided by the Aber Crafts president. The questions were primarily crafting- and LGBTQ+ history-related with the addition of general knowledge questions, as well as questions provided by other clubs and societies. These societies added questions related to their groups. £15 of the money raised went towards the prize money. £42 overall will be donated to Stonewall from this event, alongside a lot of last-minute ticket sales, as the raffle prizes were also announced at this event.
The event that ran through the entire week was the raffle for Wales Air Ambulance. An anonymous member recommended this charity, stating: ‘They are not funded by NHS Wales and therefore rely on charitable donations.’ They added: ‘…in the countryside the attendance of an air ambulance is the difference between life and death. I myself know someone who was injured and had his life saved by the local air ambulance service.’ Local businesses and crafters donated a large number and variety of prizes for the raffle. These included a bottle of mead from Shire Meadery, a £10 book voucher for Bookshop by the Sea and a handmade glass heart decoration. The raffle raised the most money out of all of the events, totalling £239.85.
Overall, it was a successful week, with Aber Crafts having raised a total of £512.85 for the various charities. RAG week is immediately followed by Green Week. Going straight from one chaotic week into another, Aber Crafts has organised 8 events throughout Green Week, from a local business scavenger hunt with a £10 gift voucher prize to a sandcastle making session at the end.
Cymraeg
Roedd Chwefror 20fed yn nodi dechrau wythnos RAG ar gyfer Crefftau Aber, cymdeithas a sefydlwyd ar ddechrau'r flwyddyn academaidd hon. Nod y gymdeithas yw annog creadigrwydd a darparu myfyrwyr ag amgylchedd hamddenol lle gallant roi cynnig ar hobi newydd neu weithio ar eu prosiectau eu hunain. Fel cymdeithas fwy newydd a llai, byddai Crefftau Aber wedi wynebu anawsterau wrth godi arian drwy un neu ddau o ddigwyddiadau mawr, felly penderfynwyd cynnal digwyddiadau amrywiol drwy gydol yr wythnos. Byddai’r arian o bob digwyddiad yn mynd i elusen wahanol y cytunwyd arni ac y pleidleisiwyd amdani gan aelodau’r pwyllgor a’r gymdeithas.
Dechreuodd yr wythnos gydag arwerthiant crefftau a phobi ar gyfer yr elusen Action for M.E. brynhawn dydd Llun. Argymhellodd Birte – trysorydd Crefftau Aber – yr elusen. Cynhaliodd y gymdeithas yr arwerthiant crefftau a phobi ar y diwrnod cyntaf mewn ymgais i ledaenu’r gair am ddigwyddiadau yn ddiweddarach yn yr wythnos, ond mewn gwirionedd daeth yr arwerthiant yn un o’i digwyddiadau mwyaf llwyddiannus. Arwerthiant pobi yw’r gweithgaredd codi arian clasurol, ac mae Crefftau Aber yn rhoi eu tro thematig eu hunain arno. Roedd llawer o nwyddau wedi'u pobi a chrefftau'n cael eu rhoi a'u gwerthu, o gacennau sinsir a bara banana i fagiau crosio a phinnau. Codwyd £99 i Action for M.E. a gwerthwyd llawer o docynnau raffl.
Cynhaliwyd yr ail ddigwyddiad, 'Market for Mind', ddydd Mawrth. Daeth llawer o grefftwyr lleol a rhai o aelodau Crefftau Aber i werthu eu nwyddau yn y digwyddiad. Cododd y gwerthwyr arian drwy dalu i gael eu stondinau eu hunain, gan roi lle iddynt rannu eu gwaith gyda’r gymuned myfyrwyr a chwrdd â darpar gwsmeriaid tra’n codi arian ar gyfer Mind.org.uk. Dewisodd llywydd Crefftau Aber Mind.org.uk, gan ei chael yn briodol codi arian ar gyfer elusen iechyd meddwl mor bwysig, gan fod y gymdeithas ei hun yn canolbwyntio ar hybu iechyd meddwl trwy greu amgylchedd ymlaciol i’w haelodau. Cododd Crefftau Aber £132 i Mind.org.uk a gwerthu hyd yn oed mwy o docynnau raffl yn y digwyddiad. Mae'r gymdeithas yn bwriadu cynnal digwyddiad tebyg ar ôl y Pasg, gan fod llawer o werthwyr wedi dweud eu bod wedi cael amser gwych ac y byddent wrth eu bodd pe bai'r gymdeithas yn cynnal digwyddiad tebyg arall. Dywedodd Ashton, a werthodd bob math o grefftau megis bagiau dis a thedis ‘mothman’: 'Fe wnes i fwynhau gwneud y ffair grefftau yn fawr - siarad â chrefftwyr cŵl ar y stondinau a dod i ymweld, gweld yr holl bethau y mae pobl yn eu gwneud. Roedd gwneud nhw (a gwario'r arian dwi'n ei wneud yn y farchnad!) yn cŵl iawn, yn enwedig gan ei fod ar gyfer elusen. Gwnaeth [y pwyllgor] waith da iawn yn rhoi popeth at ei gilydd!'
Cynhaliwyd y trydydd digwyddiad ddydd Iau. Roedd yn ddigwyddiad cydweithredol gyda chymdeithas Taskmaster, lle rhoddwyd tocynnau raffl fel gwobrau i’r rhai a gwblhaodd heriau a osodwyd gan TaskSoc. Aeth yr arian a godwyd o'r digwyddiad hwn i Ambiwlans Awyr Cymru. Er ei fod yn ddigwyddiad llawer llai ac yn codi llai o arian na'r cwpl blaenorol, roedd y rhai a fynychodd yn dal i gael hwyl, yn enwedig treulio llawer o amser yn chwarae gemau yn y "cornel Jackbox".
Y digwyddiad olaf oedd y Noson Gwis, gan godi arian i Stonewall - argymhelliad dienw. Roedd y cwis yn cynnwys cwestiynau a benderfynwyd gan lywydd Crefftau Aber. Roedd y cwestiynau’n ymwneud yn bennaf â chrefft a hanes LHDTC+ ynghyd â chwestiynau gwybodaeth gyffredinol yn ogystal â chwestiynau a ddarparwyd gan glybiau a chymdeithasau eraill. Ychwanegodd y cymdeithasau hyn gwestiynau yn ymwneud â'u grwpiau. Aeth £15 o'r arian a godwyd tuag at y wobr ariannol. Bydd cyfanswm o £42 yn cael ei roi i Stonewall o'r digwyddiad hwn, ynghyd â llawer o werthiannau tocynnau munud olaf, gan y bydd gwobrau'r raffl hefyd yn cael eu cyhoeddi yn y digwyddiad hwn.
Y digwyddiad a gynhaliwyd drwy'r wythnos oedd y raffl ar gyfer Ambiwlans Awyr Cymru. Argymhellodd aelod dienw yr elusen hon, gan nodi: 'Nid ydynt yn cael eu hariannu gan GIG Cymru ac felly maent yn dibynnu ar roddion elusennol.' Ychwanegodd: '...yng nghefn gwlad presenoldeb ambiwlans awyr yw'r gwahaniaeth rhwng bywyd a marwolaeth. Rwyf fy hun yn adnabod rhywun a gafodd ei anafu ac a gafodd ei fywyd wedi'i achub gan y gwasanaeth ambiwlans awyr lleol.' Rhoddodd busnesau a chrefftwyr lleol nifer fawr ac amrywiaeth o wobrau ar gyfer y raffl. Roedd y rhain yn cynnwys potel o fedd o Shire Meadery, taleb llyfr gwerth £10 ar gyfer Bookshop by the Sea ac addurn calon gwydr wedi'i wneud â llaw. Cododd y raffl y mwyaf o arian o'r holl ddigwyddiadau, sef cyfanswm o £239.85.
Rhwng popeth, bu’n wythnos lwyddiannus, gyda Chrefftau Aber yn codi cyfanswm o £512.85 i’r gwahanol elusennau. Mae wythnos RAG yn cael ei dilyn yn syth gan Wythnos Werdd. Gan fynd yn syth o un wythnos anhrefnus i'r llall, mae Creftau Aber wedi trefnu 8 digwyddiad yn ystod yr Wythnos Werdd, o helfa sborion i fusnesau lleol gyda gwobr tocyn anrheg o £10 i sesiwn gwneud cestyll tywod ar y diwedd.