Memories and Dedication FLOAT THIS BOAT

By Roger Woodworth

Roger Woodworth ready for another day of mentoring / David Greenfield

When the opportunity arose to restore an old canoe, I couldn’t wait to start. What made the task even more enticing was the chance to do it while working with and teaching a group of young, eager workers. The canoe restoration was an additional undertaking that was initially viewed as a fill-in project but turned out to be quite a bit more when the youth group convened to begin work in 2017.

What’s more inviting than a gentle canoe paddle on a calm lake while listening to the serenading loon calls? Not much! And one lucky Eastman resident now has the opportunity to enjoy such an outing in a very special wooden canoe.

Frank Campisi

Bob Katz, an avid canoe builder and paddler on Eastman Lake for many years, was one of the early mentors for a woodworking youth group sponsored by the ECA Recreation Department and Lakes and Streams Committee. Following Bob’s sudden passing last January, his daughters thoughtfully donated his 16-foot Mad River canoe to the youth group’s annual project called “Whatever Floats Your Boat.” The group is made up of between eight and 10 high school students living in Eastman who work on boatbuilding projects each year during their week-long school vacations in February and April. They meet each day, usually for the whole day, at the old firehouse near the South Cove Activity Center. The building provides a unique workplace with many carpentry tools and enough room to allow several ongoing projects at one time.

Mary Wormwood

The canoe was in pretty bad shape, badly weathered after having been left outside on the ground for several years. After a thorough examination, we determined that all the components, i.e., seats, gunwales, thwarts, decks, and handles, needed either replacement or refinishing, and that the hull needed a complete sanding and repainting. During the February school vacation, a core group consisting of Kristina and Sarah Austin, Anna Hill, and Nicholas Kleinschmidt toiled to remove and tag all the components to get them ready for the scraping, sanding and repairing. We published and followed a restoration guide for each step to be sure we didn’t overlook anything. Most of the work involved many hours of sanding and scraping to remove the original stain and varnish in preparation for the ultimate refinishing job on all of the parts in need of new finish. One thing we all learned throughout this process was that there were no shortcuts that could be taken: it was laborious and time-consuming with many sore muscles afterwards. With help and guidance from Eastman Member Frank Campisi, we were also able to replace the damaged cane on one of the seats. The only new parts we had to make were the gunwales, and the two decks made from oak planks for the bow and stern. John Larrabee, the group’s lead mentor, provided four 8-foot sections of new wood to construct the gunwales.

Lead mentor John Larrabee (l) with Bob Katz in 2016

The second week involved staining and varnishing the components, and sanding, priming and painting the hull. Eastman Member Mary Wormwood joined the mentors and provided a much-needed artistic and calming influence. We ultimately used three coats of marine paint on the hull to provide a lustrous finish that complemented the stained and painted components that we mounted in their original locations. We all stood back to admire the finished product and felt very proud to have accomplished the task in memory of Bob Katz. The restoration group looks forward to seeing the canoe and its new owner, Tim Isabel, on the lake. Tim was the high-bidder in a silent auction in July for the finely restored craft.

The Whatever Floats Your Boat group (l – r)/ Charlie Taber, Jack Chase, Anna Hill, Nick Kleinschmidt, John Larrabee, Kristina Austin, Mary Wormwood, Roger Woodworth, Sarah Austin, David Kay / Ellen Chandler

Enough cannot be said for the focus and dedication of the members of the youth group. The group also completed another project in 2017—a 14-foot paddleboard and paddles that would make any paddleboarder envious. Regardless of the tasks involved, whether laborious or small, the Whatever Floats Your Boat workers exhibited justified pride and pleasure in learning new skills. We are already looking forward to next year’s projects.

A longtime Eastman resident, Roger Woodworth served on the Board of Directors and ECA Council and now devotes his time to carpentry, fly fishing, and watercolor painting.

Except as noted in the group photo caption, the photos on these pages were provided by David Greenfield from his photoblogs:

Whatever Floats Your Boat Phase I at https://fotovisions.smugmug.com/Journalism/Whatever-Floats-Your-Boat/

Whatever Floats Your Boat Phase II at https://fotovisions.smugmug.com/Journalism/Whatever-Floats-Your-Boat- Phase-II-The-Finish/