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A Dedicated Group of Wood Collectors and Crafters |
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IWCS Regional Meeting in St. Louis, MO October 8th, 2005
by Jerry Zipprich (#1238)
The Central States and Great Lakes Region fall meeting was held in St. Louis, Missouri, on Saturday, October 8, 2005. Attendance was good, with 55 members coming in from five states. Brianna Roux and Regina Hedge handled the registration.
The meeting took place at Hibdon Hardwood (http://www.hibdonhardwood.com), a wholesaler of exotic hardwoods with a St. Louis retail outlet. Hibdon imports logs and uses a large band saw mill to cut them into salable boards. Cutting of a mahogany log was demonstrated.
The Hibdon facility was enjoyed by all. Hibdon's Brian Loy gave tours of the facility, and we were allowed to roam about. Viewing their office area, wood collection, craft collection, logs, stacks and pallets of exotic wood, and machinery was very interesting.
Hibdon also provided one of the gathering's real highlights: IWCS members were given a 10-percent discount on all purchases. The pallet bins of exotic cutoffs at 90 cents a pound seemed to get the most attention. Large sacks were available for filling, and several members were observed dragging heavy bags to the cashier.
Displays were set up for viewing, and Dave McWilliams and Stan King gave turning demonstrations, which many members clearly found interesting. Garry, Shelly, and Brianna Roux made sure that coffee, drinks, and donuts were available. Brianna Roux and Carol Simmons also made cookies for everyone. Lunch was catered by "Two Pots, A Pan, And A Catering Man". It consisted of antipasto trays, pasta, and toasted ravioli, a St. Louis specialty. Before lunch, our new Great Lakes Region Trustee Robert Nunan said grace.
The Roux family and Jerry Zipprich worked the wood and craft auction. Brianna and Shelly Roux did the auction recording.
The auction was quite a success, although we did have some odd items to sell-a large puffball mushroom, chestnuts, sassafras trees, gourds, squash, hedge apples, etc. We cleared $468.25 from the meeting. Proceeds of $117.50 were collected from the sale of wood and books donated by Allen Rodebeck for the Endowment Fund. In all, $585.75 was sent to our Secretary/Treasurer.
Thanks to all who attended and helped to make the memeting a success, especially the Roux family. Special thanks go out to Hibdon for letting us use their facility and for the attention given to us by the Hibdon employees. Also, special thanks are due to emergency truck driver Gary Simmons for hauling the trailer containing the tables and chairs used at the meeting. (The Roux-mobile was almost totaled the Monday before). Thanks also to Tony Labarbera for picking up the donuts, and especially to Dave McWilliams for finding Two Pots, A Pan, and a Catering Man. The food was absolutely fantastic.
One other success is worth noting: Brian Loy has been attending the local planning meetings for the last several months, and he has now become the newest member of IWCS. Below are some photos taken of the meeting.
Click on the thumbnails for a larger view of photos.
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 Some wood After the auction
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 Hibdon Retail Store
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 Mahogany Log on Sawmill
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 Greetings from Wayne
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 African Blackwood Logs
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 Piles of Snakewood
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 More Snakewood |
 1$ Per Pound Box |
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