NOTE: This is a follow-up to a story published in the Rapid City Journal on Page D7 on October 14, 2009 titled Group offers workshops in woodworking.
The Toymakers in the Rapid City Woodworking Association (RCWA) completed a series of workshops this past weekend - Dec 4, 2010. The group of ten toymakers finished over 1400 handcrafted wooden toys which are being delivered this week (Dec 5 - 13, 2010). The individuals working on the Toy Program make handmade holiday gifts and wooden toys to give to charitable organizations in the local area. Members have been working year around in their own garages as well as in monthly Saturday Toy Workshops to produce these quality wooden toys.
The toys are ready in time for Christmas giving. The toys are being distributed (at no cost) to various organizations in the area. In 2008, we made and distributed over 300 toys for the Club for Boys, WAVI, and Benji’s House. In 2009, we made and distributed more than 1,200 toys to children in The Club for Boys, Benji’s House, Working Against Violence Inc (WAVI), Youth and Family Services, Black Hills Area Habitat for Humanity, Ellsworth AFB Airmen and Family Readiness Center, and Needs Free in the Sioux Falls area. This year, 2010, we made and distributed 1430 toys to The Club for Boys, Benji’s House, Working Against Violence (WAVI), Youth and Family Services, Black Hills Area Habitat for Humanity, Court Appointed Special Advocates Association (CASA), and Needs Free in the Sioux Falls area. More than 730 children are involved in the Youth and Family Services in the Black Hills from as far north as Spearfish and as far south as Edgemont. We have received very positive feedback from all organizations that have received the toys, and they are very excited that they have been included in our toy program.
Saturday morning workshops were held in the RCWA Shop in the basement at 910 Wood Ave. You can get answers to any questions by calling Bob Buchanan at 348-2865 or Roger Bares at 484-3498.
If anyone would like to help build and assemble toys for the 2011 Toy Program, we can always use an extra hand. Members donate their time and equipment, but we can use donations of surplus wood or monetary donations for operating expenses. Call Bob Buchanan at 348-2865 or check our website http://www.sdwoodworker.org/ for more information: Monetary donations can be mailed to our RCWA Treasurer, Roger Bares at 834 Farlow in Rapid City, SD, 57701 or dropped off at the Our Redeemer Lutheran Church office at 910 Wood Ave in Rapid City.
The mission of the RCWA is to promote woodworking safety, skills and knowledge, for the amateur, professional and student craftsperson. The RCWA was formed to meet the needs of the woodworkers in the Rapid City area. We meet on the 2nd Monday of the month at 7:00 p.m. at the Our Redeemer Lutheran Church at 910 Wood Ave in Rapid City. We cordially invite men and women of all ages who have an interest in woodworking to attend our meetings. No experience is necessary for membership. Membership dues are $18 a year. Please come and share the experience, ideas, techniques and the mutual enjoyment of creating with wood.
The RCWA is a local chapter of the South Dakota Woodworkers Guild. The RCWA exists for two main reasons: (1) To exchange information that will enhance the enjoyment and skills of woodworking; and (2) To promote woodworking as a hobby, as a profession, or anywhere in between. This includes promoting woodworking safety, teaching and helping other members, enhancing the quality of life for underprivileged children of the Black Hills by making and distributing Wooden Toys to charitable organizations in the local area, and supporting community service organizations thru volunteer woodworking activities.
For more information, contact Bob Buchanan at (605) 348-2865 or Roger Bares at (605) 484-3498. Or go to our website at http://www.sdwoodworker.org/.
the end
