Festival of Trees and Lights
For many years three Des Moines-area woodworking clubs have collaborated in contributing their time and talent making Christmas tree ornaments in a local community service effort.
The Blank Children's Hospital 41st Festival of Trees & Lights fundraiser was held in late November 2024, and with a combined 300-plus handmade ornaments hand crafted by the Woodworkers, Woodturners and Woodcarvers we decorated one of the 70-plus Christmas trees that were part of this year's festival. Newsletter archives show the Woodworkers Club has been participating in this event for the last 20-plus years.
We look forward to continuing this tradition again next year with your high quality, handmade wooden ornaments. We also welcome volunteers to contribute a tree skirt, a tree topper, and to help decorate the tree in late November 2025.
In the 2024 Festival more than $1,150,000 was raised for two important programs at Blank Children's Hospital: Child Life and Center for Advocacy & Outreach.
Recycle Your Sawdust!
Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity needs sawdust to process the bad and old paint that they receive. The sawdust needs to be sawdust --not chips from a planer, jointer, or lathe. When that bag is full, contact: Curtis Guzman, Donation Coordinator, Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity (515-309-0224 ext. 103 or www.gdmhabitat.org). There is a crew that can come and pick up the sawdust, depending upon your location.
Benches building
The Iowa Arboretum is building a new family engagement project---Treehouse Village. This will be a one-of-a-kind attraction for the community. It consists of numerous treehouses, platforms, walkways, zip lines, swings and other playground equipment nicely nestled among trees overlooking a gorgeous valley. This will be a great venue for kids as well as other activities like weddings and gatherings. The Des Moines Woodworkers has agreed to build 14 sturdy oak benches to place around the village for people to sit, relax or watch their kids enjoy the playground. We are getting Bear Creek Hardwoods to mill heavy oak timbers for the benches, and we are volunteered to assemble them.
Des Moines Woodworker volunteers created the first bench for the Iowa Arboretum Treehouse Village Project. This was a test bench build to work out all the details on how we were going to assemble the 15 benches we are building for the Arboretum Treehouse Village. Members, we are tentatively scheduling the full-scale build at the Arboretum on June 1. Stay tuned for details about volunteering. Get involved, help the community.
Special thanks to Tex O., Dave G. Eugene H., Mike M., and Ken R. for making this a success.
