Woodcraft joins Turn for Troops National Turn-a-Thon for 15th year
Photo by Doug Loyer of Woodcraft Mike Collins, an accomplished woodturner who works at the Woodcraft store in Parkersburg, sands the wood smooth on a pen he is making on the lathe. He also is applying finish to the wood. Collins will then take the two pieces of wood and put them in the pen press with the remaining (not pictured) pen kit pieces.
Photo by Doug Loyer of Woodcraft Mike Collins, an accomplished woodturner who works at the Woodcraft store in Parkersburg, sands the wood smooth on a pen he is making on the lathe. He also is applying finish to the wood. Collins will then take the two pieces of wood and put them in the pen press with the remaining (not pictured) pen kit pieces.
Photo by Doug Loyer of Woodcraft Mike Collins, an accomplished woodturner who works at the Woodcraft store in Parkersburg, sands the wood smooth on a pen he is making on the lathe. He also is applying finish to the wood. Collins will then take the two pieces of wood and put them in the pen press with the remaining (not pictured) pen kit pieces.
Photo by Doug Loyer of Woodcraft Mike Collins, an accomplished woodturner who works at the Woodcraft store in Parkersburg, sands the wood smooth on a pen he is making on the lathe. He also is applying finish to the wood. Collins will then take the two pieces of wood and put them in the pen press with the remaining (not pictured) pen kit pieces.
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PARKERSBURG -- For the 15th year in a row, volunteer woodturners gathered at Woodcraft stores nationwide, including Parkersburg, over Veterans Day weekend to make pens during the Turn for Troops National Turn-a-Thon.
This year's event produced 17,097 one-of-a-kind wood pens, which will be sent to active duty or recovering military personnel across the globe. That total is the second highest in the event's 15-year history, with the record year being 2009 with 17,228 pens.
Since the first event in 2004, 175,224 pens have been crafted for the troops.
Woodturners at the Parkersburg store contributed 552 pens in 2018 -- their best year ever. Overall, the local residents have submitted 2,577 pens.
The local store offers pen turning classes throughout the year. A new turner can make a pen in less than an hour.
Though many volunteers are practiced turners, for a lot of folks woodturning is a first-time experience. Anyone with a desire to say "thank you" to the troops can come in and make pens during a Turn for Troops event.
Youth, college students, veterans and senior citizens have all given their time to turn pens, with an opportunity to include a personalized note with each pen made.
Woodcraft is based in Parkersburg.
Four other Woodcraft stores have exceeded the 10,000 mark since the program began: Tucson (19,308), Nashville (18,921), Boise (16,154) and Grand Rapids (15,682). The top four contributing stores for 2018 are Grand Rapids (2,981), Tucson (1,764), Nashville (1,390) and Boise (1,086).
The Boise location has been a Top 4 contributor all 15 years.
According to Boise Woodcraft owner Monte Eldfrick, their store looks forward to the Turn for Troops event each year.
"It brings a community of woodworkers together for the benefit of people they may never meet. We get a chance to honor, pray and spend time thinking about our service men and women across the world," he said. Though it makes for a long, hard day, "everyone leaves our shop with a huge smile on their faces knowing their day and craft counted for something beyond themselves."
Other stores submitting 1,000 plus pens in 2018 are Seattle (1,054) and Milwaukee (1,050). The single highest contribution overall was Grand Rapids with 4,004 in 2016.
Woodcraft Supply LLC is one of the nation's oldest and largest suppliers of woodworking tools, supplies and plans.