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Feb. 16, 2005 Little did Ruthe Ingram know that when she walked into her first cabinet making class at Orange Coast College, she was learning a craft that would allow her to touch the hearts of thousands of soldiers around the world in the desolate deserts of Iraq. Opportunity is knocking on doors all around us all the time. But it is truly a wonderful and rare moment when opportunity breaks its way into an otherwise normal, fairly uneventful life and allows someone to become bigger than they ever imagined possible. Ruthe Ingram is such a person. She decided one day, practically on a whim, that she would like to take a cabinet making class at the local college in her area. She enjoyed it and learned many things though at 64 years old, handling some of the large, unwieldy pieces of plywood was very difficult for her. Of course, if you knew Ruthe like I know Ruthe, you would also know that such things can be worked out and would never stop her from pursuing something she wanted. Ruthe enjoyed her first class working in wood and decided to take another and even started hanging out at the college to help out some of the younger wood workers in their endeavors. Her knowledge and expertise in the field of wood working has grown and she has made some absolutely beautiful items including boxes, pipes (of the smoking variety), courtroom gavels, toys and a variety of other projects. She learned how to beautifully integrate exotic woods into some of her projects which has resulted in some magnificent pieces. Now to Iraq. In February 2003, Keith Outten, founder of Sawmill Creek (wood-worker forum on the internet) came up with the idea to start making turned-wood pens and donating them to our troops overseas. He posted his idea on the Sawmill Creek forum and sent out a “Call to Arms” to “all Pen-turners and members of Sawmill Creek.” He mentioned that in order to get a pen in the hands of every military person stationed in Iraq, he would have to turn 100,000 pens. In response to Keith’s clarion call, over 1,500 forum messages offering pens, funds and wood have rolled in. That ball continued rolling and in early 2003 a wood-working store in Orange, California organized a nation-wide “Freedom Pen Turn-a-thon.” They called Ruthe, who by now was a wood- turner with the Orange County Wood-turners and Woodworkers Association (OCWWA) and asked if she would help with the turn-a-thon. Once she found out exactly what a turn-a-thon was, Ruthe got to work and started preparing for the big day. She began cutting pen blanks and preparing them for the day of the event. With the help of friends from OCWWA, customers of the store, and guests, over 200 Freedom Pens were turned that day. Some who came had never turned a pen before and were as thrilled to learn how to turn pens as they were to know that our military men and women would received a pen that they had personally turned. So began Ruthe’s Freedom Pen career. The experience gave her a feeling of fulfillment knowing that our military men and women would receive hand-turned wooden pens as a small token of our appreciation for the sacrifices they are making in Iraq. After the turn-a-thon, Ruthe felt energized to keep making pens on her own and she set a goal for herself of 1,000 pens. She ordered 100 pen kits from the Sawmill Creek pen project and began making pens. It didn’t take long for her to realize that this was not only going to take a considerable amount of time, but it would require a financial commitment, as well. (Unfortunately the pen kits are not free and neither is the wood!) She asked her friends at the OCWWA if they would be willing to help her make the 1,000 pens either by turning, or contributing financially. They emphatically said “yes,” and Ruthe became affectionately called the “Queen of Pens.” To date, Ruthe, with the help of her friends at the OCWWA, has shipped over 800 pens. Their commitment is still alive and going strong as Ruthe’s original goal of 1,000 pens gets closer with each passing day. Ruthe has received several responses from recipients from overseas. They are grateful to be remembered and supported in their efforts to keep our homeland safe. The Freedom Pen “turn-a-thons” continue at wood- working stores around the United States. If you are a wood-worker/wood-turner in the Orange County area you can contact Ruthe if you would like to be involved in the Freedom Pen project. Her email address is Ringram754@aol.com. Outten’s pen-making idea has been amazingly successful, especially since it is an undertaking that is equally rewarding for those making the pens as it is for those receiving them. Other websites you can visit for information are www.SawmillCreek.org and www.FreedomPen.org. ------------ About the author: Stephanie Laundrie is the mother of two. Having spent most of her life working to help others succeed, Stephanie has recently re-discovered her first love--writing, and is experimenting in different genres to find her niche. Email: laundries@dslextreme.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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