President’s Challenges: At the last meeting in February, Larry Roberts passed out some well seasoned spalted maple along with a challenge to create a turning. Besides the challenge to the turners to return with demonstrations at the March meeting of their innovation and turning skills from that well-cured stock, I would like to extend another challenge for the very worthy Food Bank 2009 Empty Bowls Project. Having nearly a year should give everyone time to work on utilitarian bowls, as well as, those unique and unusual gallery quality bowls. The minimum “overhead” of this charity enhances the amount of good work that your bowl turning efforts will bring to the hungry. The challenge is for each member to turn a utilitarian bowl a month and at least one gallery-level bowl for the event. The turner with the most number of bowls turned by 1 December will receive two-dozen raffle tickets at the annual WNT Winter event. The club members will vote on the “best” of the gallery quality bowls in a number of categories, such as: segmented, natural-edged, most unusual or unique, and other categories to be determined at the April WNT Board of Directors meeting. The vote will occur at the January 2009 meeting. The bowls that win in these categories will receive ribbons that will accompany the bowls to the Empty Bowl event. The turners of these bowls will receive a “suitable for framing” picture of the award-winning bowl and a certificate of accomplishment. Remember to ALWAYS sign your work.  Keep your tools sharp, use your safety equipment then get busy ... And make good shavings! Stormy Updated March 26, 2007