|
 March
2008
Another excellent year is underway for Carolina
Mountain Woodturners. We have already had three very good turners/teachers
demonstrate for us – Warren Carpenter, Jim McPhail, and Chris Ramsey.
And our upcoming schedule promises great demonstrations - special thanks to
John Hill for arranging our world-class demonstrators. CMW starts its 9th
year in 2008, is the largest woodturning club of its kind, and “is the gold
standard to which all other club's are compared.” (Statement by our most
recent demonstrator, Chris Ramsey, March 15, 2008.)
Our current Board of Directors, elected in
December, is listed on our website (www.carolinamountainwoodturners.org).
There are photos of the board members, listed with each person's current role on
the board. Special thanks to the outgoing board members: Pat McPhail, Franck
Johannesen, Bob Heltman, and Melissa Gunther. CMW simply would not be
the great group that it is without their ongoing contributions. Our new board
members this year: Anthony Napoli, Fred Huskins, Mike Chandler, Mike Bibb,
Bill Turpin, and Nettie Turpin. With many new faces on the board, we
want to hear from you. If something isn't done the same as it was in the past,
something is missing altogether, of if you have ideas for improving our chapter,
please let us know. All constructive comments are welcome.
Our 2008 Board met on January 18th for
our annual meeting. CMW continues to invest in its future – the library is
acquiring many new items and is continuing the conversion to more DVD titles.
Carlos Kennedy will be testing and adding new equipment for a better video
experience. The CMW Endowment is on-course and has grown with a generous
donation – thanks to Paul O'Connell. Scholarships for those with
financial need will be awarded this year (see the application on our website). A
portion of the Endowment's funds will be used this year to reduce CMW's TLC
class fee, helping 10+ CMW members nearly every month!
To continue all CMW has done in the past, and to
fulfill newer aspirations, your volunteer assistance is needed. Best of
all, you need not be an expert to help out; we have good people that are willing
to train. This year, we need assistance with A/V setup & operation (2-3 people),
the ever-growing CMW library (2-3 people), and our newsletter writing &
preparation (2 or more article writers and/or proofreaders are needed). If you
can help for only one month, or all months, each contribution is appreciated
and is a personally rewarding experience.
If you haven't yet paid your dues for 2008, please
do so right away. You can renew your membership by mail anytime – using the
Join/Renew form on our website. Dues are only $25/year for an individual or
$35/year for a family. Renewing ensures receiving email notifications,
eligibility to attend TLC classes, checkout from our excellent CMW library,
attendance at our annual auction, discounts from woodturning suppliers, and
more! Your contributions help us to continue bringing the best demonstrators in
the world. CMW is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization; your contributions are
tax-deductible.
The Folk Art Center plays an important role
in our success. We need to help them out by following a few simple expectations.
If parking in the lot off Tunnel Road, we are expected to park in the lot
furthest from the building, unless displaying a handicapped placard. If parking
in the main lot (off the Blue Ridge Parkway), we are expected to park in the
lower lot, unless a handicapped placard is plainly visible. If you come to help
us setup, please enter through the back doors of the building – and do not allow
non-members to enter this way. More recently, we've been asked to restrict all
food and beverage to the floor of the auditorium. Absolutely no food or
drinks should exit the auditorium, nor be eaten in the bleachers. Finally,
if you need assistance for something regarding the building (lights, water,
locked doors, etc), please contact a board member for assistance before asking a
FAC employee. Please contact me if you have any questions - use of the Folk Art
Center is not a privilege we want to lose.
Now for a little about me. I live in Arden, North
Carolina, just south of Asheville, with my wife and two young children. I grew
up in Boston (grade school), Colorado (high school), and Seattle. I attended
Fort Lewis College (Durango, CO) in the early 90's and continued college at
University of Washington, where I studied Mechanical Engineering, Drafting &
Design. I moved to this area in 1998 with the company my father now owns –
Accurate Technology. We design and manufacture digital length measuring systems
used in industrial and consumer applications worldwide for machinery setup and
quality control. I 'found' woodturning while attending an industrial woodworking
trade show in 2002 and talking to the person in the stand next to me (years
later, I'd learn this was Brad Packard). It looked like fun, so I attended a
week-long class at John C. Campbell Folk School. I was hooked, and am now
a tool junkie..er..woodturner. I also serve on an Industrial Woodworking Task
Force to promote, teach, and investigate Manufacturing Strategies. I am very
involved with my son's Cub Scout troop in Fletcher, NC. I recently had a new
building built that will be my shop/studio. I am a part-time woodturner,
spending 10-15 hours a month with my lathes – nowhere near enough to explore all
the ideas I have. Many of you have met my 8 year old son. He is also very
interested in woodturning and enjoys working on my bigger lathe while I work
with the mini-lathe (yes, you read that right). I joined CMW in 2003 (the first
demonstrator I saw was Binh Pho). In 2004, I started working with Paul
Rhudy in the CMW library. This was an extremely satisfying role, and I
strongly encourage everyone that is able to 'help the team' that helps make CMW
so great. This year, I'll be trying to fill the large shoes left behind by our
previous leader, Joe Ruminski. Joe is a good friend, mentor, and a
genuinely good person, to whom I am thankful.
Our next meeting will be April 12th –
the 2nd Saturday in April. Our demonstrator will
be Mike Mahoney from Utah. Mike has a B.A. in Industrial Arts from San
Diego State University, is a popular woodturning teacher, and an accomplished
woodturning artist.
Please contact me if you ever have questions or
comments. I look forward to working with all of you this year.
Hoping this letter finds you knee deep in
shavings,
Mike Fiantaca
e-mail:
mike@fiantaca.com |
