Presidents Message - 2019

Happy New Year!

As we come to the end of our second calendar year, I am amazed at how far we have come in such as short time. Our membership ranks have grown to 60 and we continue to grow as more local woodturners discover us.

Again this year I must thank all the members of your Executive for their work this past year. It is indeed a pleasure to be working with such a forward thinking group. Thanks once again to Johan Van Zyl for managing our website. Many new members have discovered us by finding us on the web. Dave Bell has us looked after on Facebook and social media. Christine Gilhuly has be stalwart in keeping our Membership organized and to Doug Rohrbacher for keeping us on the straight and narrow financially.

Thanks to all those who volunteer in various capacities in the Guild, whether selling raffle tickets, taking photos, or doing set-up and take-down. All that makes for a better Guild. Remember this is your Guild. You make it better by getting involved. Special thanks goes to Bob Jones for looking after our Show and Tell table, and to Grant McBride who set up our Library this year.

Of course the biggest item this past year was the move to the K-W Naval Association. Our rapid growth in our first year forced us to look for larger accommodations than were available at Lee Valley. The Naval Association offers us all the space we can use plus great facilities for our meetings, all at a reasonable cost. I'm sure we will be happy here for years to come.

2018 saw us witness many excellent instructional demonstrations at club meetings, all done by talented woodturners, both members and guests. Consider stepping forward and doing a demo yourself in the future. You may find it rewarding, and a lot more fun than you expected. A special thanks to Carl Durance for his guest Demos.

Spring of 2018 saw us host our first "big name" guest woodturner in the person of Glenn Lucas. Well we hit the jackpot right out of the gate, because Glenn treated us to what I would consider the very best full day demo I have ever seen. The day was full of instruction, tips and tricks, and great turning.

2018 saw us hold our first Guild Challenge, turning a Christmas Ornament in November, won by our own Dave Bell.

As we move into 2019, we have an interesting slate of demos, as well as more challenges to look forward to.

Our next major guest turner will visit us in May of 2019. Kai Meunzer from Alberta will be doing a full day demonstration on the 5th. Kai is known for his "happy boxes" among other art pieces. It promises to be a great day. In November we will be treated to an evening with Nick Agar, from the UK. Nick is a woodturner and artist who demonstrates around the world. He will be here on the 7th of November. On the day before our event, he will be running a day long workshop at Lee Valley here in Waterloo.

Each month we see a variety of items on the show-and-tell table, each showcasing the incredible talents of our Guild. It still amazes me how much talent there is in this group. Keep bringing in your work. Everyone wants to see what you are working on. We learn from seeing each other's work.

It has been a privilege to be your President again this year, and I look forward to a successful 2019.

Keep on turning!

Paul Newton

President

Waterloo-Wellington Woodturners Guild