In October or 1998 the store manager at the local Home Depot store where I worked in Lawrenceville, Georgia (a suburb of Atlanta) announced there was a corporate push on to teach classes. He didn’t particularly care what the subject was, just so he could report to HQ that we were now teaching so many new classes. I saw this as a perfect opportunity to get out from behind the millwork desk, where I was the district specialist, for a few hours on Saturday mornings.

 

Each week for the next two years, I placed a 4x8 sheet of plywood on a mobile cart in the lumber isle and taught a one-hour class or gave a demonstration of some power tool. Much to my surprise, I developed a regular following. A core group of about 15 regulars came each and every Saturday morning at 8 am and if I was ever scheduled off, I had to find a "substitute teacher," or face the consequences.

 

When it was time to move on, I announced that I would soon be quitting, whereupon everyone asked for directions to my home. They explained that I could certainly quit Home Depot if I wanted to, but there was no way they were going to let me stop teaching the woodworking classes! That is how my first woodworking club came to be.

 

Now some six years later, dues paying members run well over 100 with an average Saturday morning attendance of 60-70! This club offers 7 meetings per month. They have two special interest groups focused on scroll sawing and turning. They participate in trade shows, industrial woodworking tent sales county fairs and numerous other events. They are forced to turn down many invitations, as there is just not enough time to do them all justice.

 

As founder, I have served with three boards of directors, moved meeting locations three times and had four of the most wonderful Christmas parties you can ever imagine. I have met many wonderful folks and made many dear friends and learned more about woodworking than I ever imagined. It is true, the more you give to others, the more you receive back.

 

I hope the following information will serve to guide you and help you avoid some of the mistakes we made in the early years.

 

Ron Brown has built over 1,000 pieces of custom furniture and has personally taught more than 300 woodworking classes including special woodworking classes for a local college. Ron has taught numerous classes for Highland Hardware in Atlanta and served as the keynote speaker for the Woodworkers Guild of Georgia on three occasions. He achieved the prestigious title of Millwork Specialist for Home Depot. Scroll Saw Work Shop Magazine published a five-page feature article on his pioneering methods of scroll saw work. Ted Turner’s TBS Superstation in Atlanta, Georgia retained Ron as its "Woodworker Extraordinaire" on four different occasions to appear on its television series "The Man Made Movie". He completed eight featured woodworking projects including two sets of custom old time western Saloon Doors with louvers, the Man Made Movie Logo inlaid into the floor of a bowling alley, a replica of the "Man Made Movie House" as a mailbox and a custom coat rack.

 

Ron’s custom Cool Hammers also have a very impressive customer list including U.S. President George W. Bush, Georgia Governor Sonny Purdue, television’s The New Yankee Workshop host Norm Abram, The Wood Wright Shop’s Roy Underhill, radio’s Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura Schlessinger, WGST’s Kim Peterson and, Colonel Oliver North. He has made custom baseball bats for the Atlanta Braves Baseball players Javy Lopez and Greg Maddox.

 

(1) The DeWalt Power Tool Corporation regularly retains Ron to demonstrate their DW788 model scroll saw at trade shows.

Ron began what would eventually become the Gwinnett Woodworkers Association in 1998. Membership now totals over 120. Combined with two Special Interest Groups (SIG’s) they offer 7 meetings per month, 88 meetings per year. They cover all topics related to woodworking including all types of furniture plus scroll sawing, turning and carving. They have meetings on Saturdays and more during the weekday evening hours.

 

These groups also participate in trade shows, parking lot tent sales, exhibitions, county fairs, woodworking picnics and many other woodworking demonstrations in the area.

 

(1) The very best way to learn woodworking is from other woodworkers. There are woodworking professionals offering classes and schools in virtually every large city in America. However, these classes can be costly, easily ranging from $75 for a half day class up to thousands of dollars for classes lasting a week or more. If you are already focused on a particular aspect of woodworking and have the tools you might wish to make such and investment to increase your skill in a specific area.

 

(2) On the other hand, woodworking clubs offer from 1 to 8 opportunities per month to come together and learn some facet of woodworking. Your investment is usually only the annual dues ranging from $25 to $50 per year, far and away the less expensive alternative. With most woodworking clubs, you will most certainly have an opportunity to learn a very broad selection of woodworking skills and methods, have someone to ask advice, usually have access to a mentor and share your successes and failures with. These like-minded individuals come in all ages and from all backgrounds. Some of their skills will astound you. This is a chance to make new friends and learn new skills.

 

(3) If you have 10 experienced woodworkers in a room, there will be at least 20 opinions on how to do something in woodworking – And they will all probably work!

 

Here is one short excerpt which solves an always challenging problem:

(Of course, the 5 questions are in the guide.) 

"I once asked this last question and the new member said he could teach Windsor chair making if we were interested! We were very interested. Turns out he had spent a whole week at John C. Campbell Folk Art School just a few months before!"