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NOTE: No Meeting or Newsletter in December
(See you in January)
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THIS MONTH’S PROGRAM
(In-Person only)
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Saw Dust Party
with
All the Guild
Organized by Joe Turner
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Doors will open at 6:00pm
Dinner buffet will start around 6:40pm
Registration: Registration closed on November 13th.
Food: The Guild will be providing the entrée, fried chicken.
If your Last name starts with A – M, please bring a side dish.
If your Last name starts with N – Z, please bring a dessert.
Enough to satisfy 10 – 12.
There will NOT be outlets available, so do not bring a dish that needs to be plugged in.
Recognition: After you get your name tag (upon entering), please make your way over to the Recognition Table to receive raffle tickets for each of the areas you have been involved with that help keep the SLWG thriving. Details will be available at the table. A member from each of the various groups will win a gift card.
Fun: Activities include “How many screws/wood plugs are in the Jars”, Wooden Tower Building (team event), and SLWG Bingo.
Prizes: Prizes will be awarded throughout the night, either earned or randomly, so your chances of winning are real (way better than Lotto).
Joe Turner
Joe.turner@slwg.org
314.495.5938
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This month’s meeting will not be live-streamed. We had technical difficulties with the September and October live-streaming and we apologize for the inconvenience for those who tried to access the meeting.
The good news is that we have resolved the issues and expect to be back streaming live for the January 2026 meeting.
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Working with Scroll Saws
with
Brian Ellison
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Some of the examples that Brian brought to the meeting.
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Nice handy scroll saw blade holder made from scrap.
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Back side of the mailbox clock.
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Brian showed his first project that got him hooked on the scroll saw.
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If you could not make it to last month’s meeting in-person, here is the LINK for streaming.
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SAVE THE DATE!
Annual Super Star Weekend
NEW PRESENTER
Saturday, April 11, 2026
Another great Guild weekend in store for Guild Members only!
Due to unforeseen circumstances, Rolland Johnson had to cancel, but Guild Super Star Weekend Coordinator Brad Bernhard has been able to engage Jeff Miller for the all-day Saturday woodworking learning experience at the same rate of $60 per member.
More info will come in future Newsletters and on the SLWG website. Registration for this event will be available hopefully starting this month.
Watch for the announcement!
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Editor’s Note: If you want more details on the S&T items that were presented at the meeting, click on the link above to watch the video of the last meeting.
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Jason Gresoski brought in a model of a 16th century Japanese Cargo Boat that he assembled and then added a stick-built cherry structure with feature lighting.
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Bob Coulter brought in some nicely done boxes that he made during and after a class with Doug Stowe at the School of the Arts in Arkansas.
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Joe Turner showed a Gordian Knot he made with 6 different wood species veneered on Baltic Birch cores to make 6 different colors. He said that it took 69 steps to solve the puzzle. Pictured are both the wooden pieces and the original plastic pieces he copied from.
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Joe also showed his International Puzzle Party 42 Exchange Puzzle entry from the Tokyo, Japan party. Called The IPP 42 Puzzle, it consists of 6 mahogany and 6 maple wooden pieces which need to be arranged into the numbers 4 and 2. The puzzle was then donated to the evening’s drawing.
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Brian Ellison showed this turning that he cut into quarters, glued, and turned again to make a neat little night light.
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Scott Berlinger showed his first chair that he made based on an article from August 1989 Wood Magazine. Since the intended user (wife) is 4’10”, he scaled it down from the article dimensions to the appropriate size. He used his bandsaw to make the curves on the back. Wood material is African Walnut, and he did his own upholstery.
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TOOL RECALLS
and Other Videos
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Check these links out if you have these items (some might be a little dated):
Leatherman Multitool Recall (7/31/25) LINK
ToolGuyd Recalls Website (Various) LINK
Grizzly Wood Lathes (11/2/23) LINK
Rigid Framing Nailers (7/31/25) LINK
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COMMUNITY
St. Louis Woodworkers Guild contributions to the local community
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Year End Update
Santa’s elves finished up their work for the year, divided up the toys, and have made all their deliveries. A total of 1,856 toys and toy sets were built during the year and distributed to seven different organizations in the area.
This year’s deliveries bring the total donated since 2021 to 7,746.
Our thanks go out to all that donated their time and materials to make this program the success that it has been.
Wayne Humphrey
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Toy Committee Chair Bob Baird will be at the Toy Table to receive completed toys and distribute parts to those who request them. Please be sure to contact him ahead of the meeting if you need parts.
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Toy Committee Update
If you need supplies (wood, dowels, wheels, pins, etc.) please don’t let that stand in your way of making toys 😊. Reach out to Bob or Wayne, and we will let you into the shed to look around for what you need.
We have lots of patterns for toys of every kind. Contact me, and I will share them with you. We hope to have them all up on the website soon.
Please contact a committee member with any comments or suggestions you may have for the program and thank you to all who have built toys and contributed to this important program.
Bob Baird
Toy Committee Chair
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Collected
October — 189
YTD — 1,741
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Delivered
October — 176
YTD — 1,358
Since 1994 — 93,112
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2025 Toy Program Major Contributors
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Over 100 Club
William Marsek — 418
Bill Meuth — 338
Paul Hellenbrand — 330
Linda Turner — 321
Dan Sudkamp — 153
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NEW CONTRIBUTORS
None this month
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2025 Target and Challenge
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Target for Delivered Items: 4,000
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10% Member Participation Target
(40 Members)
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28% ACHIEVED
11 Members (through September)
(Total Guild Members 402)
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Organizations that we currently donate toys to include:
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BJC Children’s Hospital
Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital
Hawthorn Children’s Psych. Hosp.
LifeWise STL
Mercy Hospital North Pediatrics
Lambert St. Louis Airport USO
Arlington United Methodist Church
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Peace Pantry Cedar Hill
RankenJordan Ped. Bridge Hospital
Rockwood School District
Shriners Hospitals for Children
Toys for Tots
Crisis Nursery Wentzville
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Bob Baird, Chair
Paul Bailey
Hal Donovan
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Charles Schrock
Grady Vaughan
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Please contact us with comments, suggestions or if you need to arrange pickup or delivery of toys. Individual contact info can be found on the Members Only section of the SLWG website HERE.
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HSH Table Build Community Outreach
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Tom will NOT have wood to distribute at this month’s meeting
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Great turnout (20-25) on November 1st for the HSH tour. I hope everyone was impressed as much as I was with Besty (the founder), Scott, and the HSH facility. Betsy told the group how much HSH clients and volunteers like the Guild’s solid wood, hand made tables. She thanked the Guild for the time and effort that goes into each table.
Eight tables, which I included in the October count, were delivered after the tour. This brought our grand total to 498 donated tables as of the end of October.
Jim Hessburg donated an antique table he had given to him by a neighbor that he rebuilt and refinished. I dropped it off at HSH last Friday. Good start to November.
Doug LaRico, Vickie Berry, Alan Brown, and Bob Jones answered the call for dinette table wood. I will pick up enough wood to make eight tables. Looking forward to a good November total.
Tom Tierney
(314) 412-1817
tmtierney@gmail.com
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Board Member Hal Donovan presents the Guild’s 500th table to Betsy Reznicek, Executive Director of Home Sweet Home.
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Tally to 10/31/25:
Current Month Current Year Program Total
Dining Tables 4 13 46
End Tables/Sofa Server 11 70 396
Coffee Tables 4 12 46
Night Stands 0 5 10
Total 19 100 498
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Total Tables by Year
FY 2022-2023 102
FY 2023-2024 121
FY 2024-2025 175
FY 2025-2026 (7 months) 100
Grand Total for Program 498
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FY 2025-2026 Target and Challenge
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Target for Delivered Tables: 150
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Table of Recognition
Below are the Members who have built five or more tables in the current FY.
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5+
Alan Brown
Paul Deutsch
Paul Helenbrand
Doug LaRico
Charles Schrock
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10+
Grady Vaughan
20+
Hal Donovan
Tom Tierney
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Current Year No. of 5+ Builders 8
Overall No. of 5+ Builders 17
Current Year No. of Builders 20
Overall No. of Builders 41
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NEW HSH TOOL KIT PROJECT
Do you have extra hand tools that need a new home? The Guild has a solution for you!
We’ve selected HomeSweetHome as the perfect organization to benefit.
If you are coming to the Sawdust Party on the 20th, Vickie Berry will have a collection box and at every meeting.
See more details in the Forum on the SLWG Website at this LINK.
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Woodworking Classes
Held at Faust Park Workshop
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Faust Park Workshop Information
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- To participate in the Workshop Safety Class or use the shop, you must have paid the current year Guild dues and have your current membership card with appropriate marking.
- To use the Guild Workshop during open hours, you must have passed a Workshop Safety Class. First time Safety Class is $20. Refresher attendance is FREE!
- No one below the age of 16 is allowed in the shop
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For Faust Park Shop “Open Hours” and the next Safety Class, click on this LINK for access to the website calendar.
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Directions to the shop: Plug the following address into your GPS or phone:
1135 Henry Jackson Rd. Chesterfield, MO
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Join or Renew your Guild
Membership Today!
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Annual Dues Renewals
Grace Period
If a membership lapses, a former member can rejoin the guild within 12 months of expiration without having to retake the $20 Shop Safety Class. After 12 months have passed, the individual will be required to Renew membership and retake the $20 safety class.
Annual membership renewal is available online (click on button below) with any major credit card, or mail a check for the appropriate amount with member’s name in the memo line to
St. Louis Woodworkers Guild
P.O. Box 411766
St. Louis, MO 63141-9998
Current membership and completion of Safety Class status is required for classes and use of the Faust Park Shop.
CURRENT Annual Membership Dues:
Basic Membership $50
Full Shop Membership $120
A Basic Membership entitles the member to four (4) uses of the Guild Shop during the membership year.
A Shop Membership entitles the member to unlimited use of the shop during Open Shop hours.
Member benefits also include:
> Discounts at Guild sponsors
> Access to Project Workshops
> Access to a local community of woodworkers
> Access to the secure portion of the website
See the SLWG Website for signing up!
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Jessica Perkins
Paul Ganninger
Phil Collins
Brandon yu
Lyndon Hubbard
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Laurie Robinson
Haley Atwell
Sandra Daniels
Ken Simpson
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If you are a current or retired Boeing employee you can contribute to the St. Louis Woodworker’s guild through the Boeing Gift Match program. The guild is now an approved charitable organization with the Boeing program. As an employee participant, your donation of $25.00 USD or more or the equivalent volunteer hours of 25 hours or more will be matched 1:1 by Boeing. The maximum individual contribution is $6,000.00 or 6,000 volunteer hours. Your contribution is tax deductible as long as you follow three simple steps:
Step 1: Eligible Boeing employees or retirees first make a contribution directly to the guild
Step 2: After making your donation go to Total Access and click on My Community Giving – GIVE – Gift Match on the Boeing Gift Match page.
Step 3: Register your donation whether it’s monetary or volunteer hours and select The St. Louis Woodworker’s Guild and enter the total amount and the date of the contribution.
It’s that easy, you get a great tax break and it benefits the guild directly. If you have any questions, please email Brian Ellison at president@slwg.org and if I don’t know the answer, I will try to find it for you.
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SLWG Officers, Board Members and Committee Leaders
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President:
Brian Ellison
president@slwg.org
Vice President:
Corey Doner
vicepresident@slwg.org
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Secretary:
Adam Conners
secretary@slwg.org
Treasurer:
Joe Turner
treasurer@slwg.org
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Directors:
Hal Donovan (exp. 2026)
Grady Vaughan (exp. 2027)
Bob Kastigar (exp. 2028)
Bob Danner (exp. 2029)
Immediate Past President:
Jay Noffsinger
Membership Coordinator:
Brian Ellison – membership@slwg.org
IT/Sponsorship/Donations Coordinator:
Todd Martin – donations@slwg.org
IT Administrator:
it@slwg.org
IT Support Team
support@slwg.org
Todd Martin
Dave Schuster
Jim Becher
Nick Balogh
Steve Botkin
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Librarian:
Al Carlson
Toy Committee Chair:
Bob Baird
toys@slwg.org
Photographer:
Leo Weisman
Shop Manager:
David Gronefeld
Newsletter Editor:
Grady Vaughan
newsletter@slwg.org
Classes and Workshops Coordinator:
Corey Doner
Program Coordinator:
Corey Doner
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Our Sponsors
The St. Louis Woodworkers Guild relies heavily on sponsorship to execute on our mission statement of education, community service, and local development.
Please Patronize our sponsors who support the guild and our mission to encourage and educate members and non-members to enjoy and enrich their woodworking skills and experiences.
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Walnut Level Sponsor. Norrenberns Lumber & Hardware is a family owned and operated union shop with years of experience in the industry. We are a fully licensed and insured company with a wide variety of products in stock.
We are a full-service lumberyard and small hardware store, both fully stocked. In our lumberyard, we have all types of wood and a small selection of hardwoods. We are excited to be a walnut sponsor to support local woodworkers. Remember to tell us the guild sent you!
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Pine Level Sponsor. Guild members will receive a 10% discount on saw sharpening at Quinn Saw.
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Pine Level Sponsor. Learn the art of Traditional Woodcarving with professional woodcarver, Mary May!
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