Things to Do in Springfield

Veteran artisan Suzie Liles had already been a reputable figure in the fiber arts community for nearly 20 years—teaching, chairing conferences, and being active in several design and weaving guilds—when in March 2008 she and a partner decided to open Eugene Textile Center. An MFA in Fibers from the University of Oregon, Suzie channels her training, experience, and passion for all things woolly into making the center a craftsperson's paradise of name-brand supplies and instructional workshops in various forms of textile conjuring. Local hobbyists and professional fiber artists alike are able to rent spinning wheels and other equipment on a weekly or monthly basis. Suzie also welcomes visitors to weaving and surface-design studios, which are equipped with looms and a dye kitchen.

The acrobatic arm of the River Road Park and Recreation District, Gymnastics Northwest offers classes and parties for tumblers aged 18 months to 16 years. Reflex beams, rings, a pommel horse, and an in-ground trampoline await first timers and astronauts-in-training for weekly classes and events. Open-gym sessions run on Fridays for acrobats up to age 8, and Action Nights see junior jumpers aged 6–12 bound on the spring floor and feed the vaulting horse every third Saturday of the month.

On Saturday, May 5, and Sunday, May 6, a sea of vendors and spa technicians transform the Lane Events Center into an escape for women of all ages. The Just for Women Expo's two days of sensory indulgence and shopping benefit visitors twice over, as 50% of ticket-sale profits are donated to organizations dedicated to women's health. This year, comedienne, stress-management expert, and author Leigh Anne Jasheway sets the expo's tone with a keynote speech and by filtering the audience's laughter through auto-tune, which then harmonizes with a number of personal-enrichment seminars. Winetasting and fashion shows punctuate hours of bargain hunting, and raffle tickets given to each guest offer a chance to win a Girlfriends Getaway for four.

Girls Night Out caps Saturday's events with four hours of catered spa pampering and revelry for those 21 and older. Gentlemen servers swing past makeover stations carrying trays of hors d'oeuvres, and 15-minute massages and bites from a chocolate buffet revive guests after belly-dance lessons. Guests to this event also take home goodies and enjoy two free drinks apiece to toast their superior toasting skills.

Helping youngsters succeed in gymnastics comes as second nature for husband-and-wife coaching duo Rosen Manolov and Neli Manolova, whose own daughters, Rali and Iva, grew up practicing gymnastics under their direction and now lead classes at The U.S. Gymnastics Academy. Rosen’s stint as the men’s gymnastics coach for Bulgaria at the Sidney Olympics and Neli’s years of competing internationally are experiences they call upon while guiding aspiring gymnasts toward their personal goals, whether they be to join an Olympic team or to dramatically end conversations with back handsprings.

The U.S. Gymnastics Academy’s sprawling 13,000-square-foot facility provides enough elbow room for fledging flippers to flourish, and its in-ground trampolines, foam pits, and high-quality equipment ensure a safe and fruitful learning environment. The world-class coaches also host various fun and creative summer camps, where kids tumble, draw, and learn to build campfires by high-kicking kindling in rapid succession.

Owned and operated by glass artists and collaborators Alejandro Hernandez and Ciara Cuddihy, Studio West houses a gallery of fine paintings and glasswork attached to a full glassblowing studio. The cream walls and bright lights of the gallery give way to the industrial metal and stony tile of the workshop, where artisans can be seen retrieving white-hot gobs of glass from the furnaces. These mounds of molten potential are regularly rolled and shaped into handmade trinkets and vases, which can be immediately smashed and melted, completing their life cycle. Visitors can experience the process for themselves during workshops, where they receive hands-on training from the glassworkers in how to bend the superheated silica to their will.

The dungeon masters within Evolution Gaming's dragon-haunted walls lord over not only a board-, card-, and model-game depot, but also a stadium that hosts campaigns, tournaments, and one-off games. Miniature battlefields both urban and rural might be rolled over by Flames of War tanks and infantry, or invaded by the elves, orcs, and humans of Warhammer. Aspiring game masters can peruse several walls of rulebooks before stepping into alternate worlds or eras of the past such as in Founding Fathers.