The PS 321 Holiday Craft Fair is an institution on Seventh Avenue. It’s been in existence for years and there is always a great selection of vendors.

This year, Sara Greenfield, a 3rd grade teacher at PS 321, sold sock monkeys in support of an arts organization called Fresh Art. The mission of Fresh Art, a non-profit organization , is to provide epanded artististic and personal development, as well as entrepreneurial opportunities to New York City artists with special needs.

It was founded in 1997 by people active in social services and the arts, who believe that artists with special needs should be recognized for their talent and creativity and not solely for the obstacles in their lives. Fresh art connects these challenged artist wot their communities with the belief that they will benefit in all aspect of their lives from recognition of their cultural contributions to society.

The sock monkeys were definitely one of the hot items at the show. There were a lot of sock monkey personalities in a wide range sizes, shapes, and colors. A sock monkey in a vest and a tie. A sock monkey bride. A hipster sock monkey (“he listens to Phish,” one of the volunteers manning the booth said. There was lounge singer sock monkey with a hot pink boa and a mama sock monkey with an adorable little baby.

Visitors to the fair gathered around oohing and ahhing trying to figure out which one they wanted to buy for $30. Check were made out directly to Fresh Art, so all sales will go directly to that organization.

There’s lots more information about Fresh Art online as well as ways to buy the sock monkeys. Go to www.freshartnyc.com

I also noticed something about a sock monkey circle where people get together and make sock monkeys. I will look into this and post about that ASAP. My daughter has been taking an afterschool sock monkey workshop with Sara and she LOVES IT.