In the mid-1990s, there was no woodturners club in northeastern Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Woodturners were headquartered in the Milwaukee area. In 1998, Sam Main, the treasurer of that group, held a special meeting at his shop in Appleton to which he invited local turners along with regular club members.
At that meeting, there were enough local turners interested in forming a separate group. These turners met shortly thereafter to form the North East Wisconsin Woodturners club, which subsequently became a chapter of the American Association of Woodturners.
One member, Cliff Allen, was the resident woodworking and turning instructor at the Boys' and Girls' Brigade in Neenah, and he arranged for the club to hold its meetings there. This was an excellent choice because the facility included well-equipped woodworking and metalworking shops, both of which contributed significantly to the club's growth. The group adopted the format and many of the functions that were part of the Wisconsin Woodturners group, including holding a raffle and gallery at each meeting along with a featured demonstration. The new group also decided to hold ten meetings per year with July and August as vacation months.
Twelve years and 118 meetings later, the North East Wisconsin Woodturners club continues to meet at the Brigade. The club has grown from a handful of participants to a total of 80 registered members. (Membership is capped at 80 owing to meeting space limits. The club currently has a waiting list of interested turners hoping to join.)
Over time, the club acquired its own equipment and accessories used for turning, and it established a library that continues to grow. The club received a grant from the American Association of Woodturners that it used to upgrade equipment and purchase a Powermatic 3520B lathe for demos. The club is also the proud owner of a sophisticated video recording and viewing system and has a portable mini lathe that members can take home or out for demonstrations.
Greg Kulibert of Oshkosh is our long-time club president and newsletter publisher. Barb Rohloff took over the treasurer duties from her dad shortly after the club began and is still our treasurer. Ray Hansen is the club librarian and is leading our conversion into the DVD age. Cyril Griesbach is our program chairperson, coordinating outside demonstrators for our meetings. Steve Miller coordinates a mentor program for new turners. Ron Siebers heads a club store that stocks turning items for members. Rob Nelson is our audio/visual operator.
