Wilda Garrison will be 93-years-old in two weeks. She says after 90 you brag about it. Garrison has been attending the Lee Woodcarvers Activity at the Lee Community Center’s Senior Center on Glebe Road in Arlington for 20 years. She has a carved relief on the table and a discussion ensues about whether it is three versions of an elk or a moose.
"I don't know. It's just what jumped over the fence," she said.
Garrison says you should really start with carving in the round to get the feel of the knife."
Bob Haraker sits beside Garrison. He has been coming for a couple of years and is working on a little bird in walnut. Garrison comments that it is a hard wood since most of the carving is done in bas relief. Haraker adds that it's less the product than the company of the group. They get together for Christmas potlucks and other special events.
BJ France describes herself as the newest member of the group. She says she likes relief carving, but today is working on a loon that she is microplaning with a rasp that looks like a large parmesan cheese grater. France says that some people have 200 tools but you can get by with about six. Vic Perez has a small mouth bass on the table in front of him that he will stain. It sits amidst other carvings including a dolphin, an owl that he has burned to get the feathered pattern and a dog that they call "playful pup" but no one has any idea what kind of dog it is. Perez is a serious woodcarver who also works at home.
A couple has joined the group as visitors to see if they would like to be part of the woodcarvers. Perez explains they have blocks of wood there already donated by former members of the group for newcomers to use. The couple has done jewelry work and a lot of other crafts and she says they have two grandsons that she is always looking for things to do with them as well as what new things she can learn. People come and go. Someone pointed out that a 96-year-old member of the group recently left. The group meets every Thursday from 1-3 p.m. and is free to anyone with an Arlington County 55+ pass.