NEW MARLBOROUGH, Mass. — New Jersey transplants Steve Butler and Liesl Carlson are bringing the joy of learning traditional handiwork — from wood carving to candle making, from fly-tying to banjo playing — to their new Berkshires home. 

 

Butler taught at the Peters Valley School of Craft in New Jersey, where he was head of the woodworking program, and has a YouTube DIY show. Carlson makes handcrafted jewelry.

 

The husband and wife were looking for a similar artisan community here and founded Mill River Folk School in 2024. 

 

"We were just commiserating, going, boy, I really miss that community, right? Because we're so sparse, and Marlborough is five villages all over the place, and there's a lot of people here, but there isn't something like this to bring them together. So we are just saying, well, let's create the community," Butler said.

 

"We just really wanted to get the message that this is for everyone, and it's hands on. So a folk school is basically preserving, originally traditional crafts, but we're just preserving hands-on skills and crafts, trying to do our best at that."

 

Butler asked around for appropriate space and United Southfield Church pastor Robert Olsen donated the vacant Southfield Ladies Hall, which has a kitchen. 

 

The workshops started last year with eight classes and eight different instructors. People were able to learn from those in the community. The lineup of classes has grown for this year and the couple are trying to expand even more now that the school has nonprofit status.