Pulling Out all the...Yarn?

Columbia Woman Works Toward Independence Through Knitting

By: Christie Nicks

COLUMBIA, Mo., Loop by loop, knitting needle in hand, Victoria Salerno Paul, a 22-year-old Columbia resident, is stitching her way to independence one strand through the next.

“I feel like it’s a real life application of my art,” said Salerno Paul as she pulled a piece of teal yarn through a loop. “A hand made hat is something you don’t find anymore.” Salerno Paul, previously a dual Art and Spanish major, quit going to school a year ago. Instead, she now invests her time working at Dryer’s Shoes in the District as well as knitting hats to hopefully one day sell in boutiques and perhaps even open her own business in the future.

“The capability to start my own business and not being afraid to is something that most young women don’t have the courage to do,” said Salerno Paul.

Starting a business of her own is only a small way that Salerno Paul has proved herself a courageous individual though.

“When I was 14 my dad was really ill,” said Salerno Paul, “My mom woke me up and told me my dad had passed away.” Even though Salerno Paul’s parents divorced when she was 5 years old, she still recalled the experience as a difficult one. Two years later, Salerno Paul’s mother remarried a man who Salerno Paul doesn’t refer to as her step dad, but simply, “dad.”

“I think she’s incredibly mature and independent,” said Emmalee Leicht, 24, and Salerno Paul’s best friend. Leicht described how many students remain sheltered throughout their college career by parents, but said Salerno Paul isn’t one of them. “Her mom I know had a lot to do with how independent she is,” said Leicht. “ It wasn’t like her mom abandoned her or anything like that, she just raised her to be a self sufficient woman from a very early age.”

“The best thing my mom ever did was tell us we can do anything,” said Salerno Paul. She took this message to heart. Salerno Paul not only works full time at the shoe store and knits, but she also enjoys salsa dancing as well as participating in the United Methodist Women’s group. “I really like the connection I have with the older population,” said Salerno Paul, “They give me wisdom and recipes.”

While she is an active member in her church’s women’s group, primarily composed of senior women, Salerno Paul said she would also like to inspire confidence in young women. She described how being a confident young woman helped her become the independent person she is today and would like to pass that on to other girls going through hard times. “It’s important to have confidence and independence when you walk into a room,” said Salerno Paul.

As for the future, Salerno Paul doesn’t know where that will take her. She said that “Everything is temporary, nothing is permanent,” but giving back is what she likes to do. “ My ideal dream job is to be a philanthropist,” said Salerno Paul. Along with this goal she said she would like to maybe start her own non-profit organization.

With her bubbly smile and colorful personality Salerno Paul is making her own way in the world thread by thread armed with her thought, “I wanna do big things and help a lot of people.”

A Note From An Aspiring Journalist!

Recently in one of my journalism classes I was assigned the task to simply go out, find someone (no one I knew) and tell their story. I'm really proud of the way this story turned out because it only proves Steve Hartman's (CBS) concept that everyone has a story, to be true. You can find a story staring you right in the eye from the face of a perfect stranger.