Next meeting: Tuesday, March 10, 2020, 3 p.m., St. James Community Center
Shop Open House: Tuesday, March 17, 2020, 3-4 p.m., 3770 Bridgewater Dr., hosted by Craig Thompson (green beer served!)
Our growing St. James Woodworkers group had a terrific meeting on February 11th at the Community Center. Overall 30 people attended, including 11 new members! This was our first official meeting for 2020 and only our second since starting the group last year.
Meeting agenda
- Recapping the January field trip to Marsh Point Enterprises (Gary Mlynek)
- Membership and Treasurer’s Report (Wayne Kruger)
- Safety Minute (Fred Walters)
- Show and Tell (David Campbell, Gary Mlynek, Steve Lillie, with on-the-spot contributors via photos)
- Future Activities (field trips, etc.)
- Community Service Projects (memorial flag cases, wooden wheeled toys)
- Website Demo (Fred Walters)
- Special Presentation – John Boughton’s motorcycle rocker
- Raffle
- Upcoming Events
The PowerPoint presentation from the meeting, including the speaker’s photos, is below.
[embeddoc url=”https://stjameswoodworkers.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/SJWoodworkers_2-20_meeting_web.pptx” viewer=”microsoft”]
Membership is growing, and the latest count is 41 men and women. We have many talented and skilled individuals in St. James who enjoy working with wood. Not everyone has told their story and shown their work, but it’s clear that impressive work is underway with furniture, wood art, carving, turning and curious niches. We have much to share and to learn from each other.
The safety minute featured a saw, an x-ray, a few weeks of bandages, a more cautious and humble woodworker, an array of pushblocks and featherboards, and a new saw.
Three brave members brought work to display, including a small floor cabinet for audio headphones and associated electronics, a comfort-enhanced Adirondack chair, and samples of one-of-a-kind tabletop and wall wood art. A few others shared photos and commented on recent projects.
John Boughton was our first member project presenter. We believe he wore out at least one spokeshave making his “rocking horse” motorcycle. Months of planning and handwork resulted in a gorgeous 1/2-scale motorcycle that will be auctioned at Sotheby’s in New York later this year with the proceeds benefitting a U.K. -based charity retraining veterans. Photos are available on our website and John has patterns for this project and other traditional rocking horses if members wants to make copies.
The “one thing” you want from this group . . .
Several members turned in our initial survey responses that asked “What’s the most important thing you want from your membership in the St. James Woodworkers?” The most frequent responses were:
- Improve woodworking skills
- To learn finishing techniques
- How to sourcing materials and supplies
- To learn and improve wood turning and other focus group topics
- Fellowship
Website
The St. James Woodworkers’ website (https://stjameswoodworkers.org) is growing, and we hope it serves as a hub for most of our activities. Log in and complete your personal profile for access to member information and all of the content. Fred Walters has constructed a solid framework, and contributions (pictures, stories, ideas) are welcome. If you need help logging in don’t hesitate to reach out.
Member resource stemming from last month’s tour
Marsh Point Enterprises is a robust cabinet shop located around the corner from St. James. Torrie and John Dinyovsky (St. James residents) hosted our formative group last month and graciously made a sign for our club on their CNC router. Marsh Point has full complement of machinery and access to materials of all kinds. Members wishing to take advantage of their services should contact them at 910-443-0329. The shop address is 4705 Southport-Supply Road, Units #301-302 (end of building facing north).
Meeting raffle
Joe Lisi was the lucky winner of the raffle, four Jorgensen clamps . . . because you can never have enough clamps.
You have to attend to win!
A final word from the president . . .
This is your club, and as the founder, I would like everyone to have a say in the direction we take. Please send what you want from the group as well as your ideas for presentations, topics and demonstrations. If you have a skill you would like to present or demonstrate let us know.
We have many plans and future activities for the coming year including:
- Member workshop open houses
- Wood/supplies buying trips
- Klingspor’s annual Woodworking Show in Hickory, NC in October
- Focus/special interest groups (SIGs)
Remember to check out the St. James Woodworkers website for details, updates and meeting dates/times to stay informed and involved in our organization.
– Gary Mlynek
Next meeting: March 10, 2020, 3 p.m., St. James Community Center