The Blackhawk Woodcarvers Monthly Business Meeting was called to order by President, Elaine Terrell. Old minutes were read and approved. All bills paid to date. Will be paying Klehm Arboretum the rental balance for the August show.

Old Business: Show activities were reviewed by Roger Benedict ......... floor plan, post cards, carved turtles, volunteers, judging, set-up Friday afternoon, and pictures. . Larry Clark will be taking pictures with film and digital cameras.

The September 13th picnic was reviewed, and this year everyone is to bring his or her own beverages.

The autumn festival at Klehm Arboretum will be October 8th and 9th, and a signup list will be generated for the next meeting. Those who attend will be demonstrating carving, show & tell, and/or selling.

New Business: Ray Olson is organizing a field trip to Amboy to see a field of chain saw tree carvings. Those who are attending (including spouses) on Saturday, August 20th shall meet at the Kenrock parking lot and be ready to leave at 9:30 am. Car-pooling is needed, see Ray Olson for any questions or details of the trip.

A wooden plaque for an honor roll of deceased members was brought up. No action was taken.

Ron Flam had surgery same day as the meeting.

There was no presentation. Carving continued with turtles.

Meeting adjourned at 8:20 pm.

Respectfully submitted

Roger Ward reported on his recent family Ireland trip about trees and available wood. Ireland has little available wood except around castles. One needs written permission to cut down a tree. Carvers in this country suffer somewhat. But some people collect wood stored in bogs over many years, as much as 5000 years.  Roger showed us a sample that a local citizen gave him.

There were many completed turtles passed around and collected by Tony DeVita for the show. There were so many and quickly passed around, that unfortunately it was not possible to record the carvers' names.

August 12—-Set up your table for the show from noon to 5 pm. Also register and check in for the judging tables.

August 13—Doors open at 7:00 am for setting up personal tables and judging check-in. Show is from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

August 20—Filed trip to Amboy chain carvings. Leaving parking lot at 9:30 am.

September 13 —Annual Picnic at Sinissippi Park shelter house. Eat at 5:30 pm.

October 8 & 9 — Klehm Arboretum's autumn show on Saturday and Sunday. As last year, this is a very good PR as well as a good public turn out to buy your carvings and show off your talents.

We have many carvers taking classes across the country. Recently Ted Faber, Bob Hallstrom, and Ray Olson completed their annual trek with a week course in Crete, Nebraska at Doane College.  From looking at their class carvings they apparently were good students.  Other carvers, Don Stansfield and John Bibby annually go to Branson for their days in the classroom. Seeing their past carvings we also know that they paid attention to the instructor.  All these carvers find their old friends and continue to network with carvers from across the country. The snowbirds' carvers (winter residents) also attend a good share of classes; note there are too many names to mention.  It goes with out saying that there is a lot of talent developed from these classes. Thus here is a challenge; for those returning from classes, how about some informal presentations during our business meetings regarding your new knowledge?

____Keep your tools sharp,

Roger Benedict

All that is needed is the floor set-up, because we are ready for the show. See Tony DeVita to donate your carvings for the raffle.

Please return your filled out application form with a check to Don Stansfield. His address is on the application form.

Set-up time is Friday afternoon, August 12th from noon to 5 pm. Also this is a good time to set up your table and be ready for the show Saturday morning. Early registration and judging table set-up is also during this day

We have great expectations for this year's show with the new location at Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden. The show room and adjacent room facilities will be a wonderful asset to show off your carvings. Please encourage your friends and relatives to mark their calendars.

SUMMER ANNUAL PICNIC

Plans are set for Tuesday, September 13 at the Sinissippi Park shelter house. Bring a dish to pass, own beverages, and your meat choice to cook on the provided grills, and let's eat around 5:3O pm.

August 13  Rockford, IL. Blackhawk Woodcarvers 10th annual carving and competition show held at Klehm Arboretum & Botanical gardens 2701 Clifton Ave. Registrations, Don Stansfield (815) 235-0075

September 11  Madison, WI. Capital Area Carvers of Wisconsin 17th annual show and sale held at Olbrich Botanical Gardens Atwood Avenue.

October 22-23  Wheaton, IL. North Suburban Carvers 26th annual Artistry in Wood Exhibition and competition held at DuPage County Fair grounds. (773) 763-1788 Marcy Samat.

Ron Flam is recovering from surgery to repair a previous incision. Cards and phone calls will cheer him up.

A couple of old time members showed up that we were glad to see them; Rich Shields, Emil LeBeau, and Jerry Macomber.