IN THE BEGINNING
It all began in 1981 when Jerry Sanderson saw a picture of a woodcarving in Chip Chats magazine. This carving had been entered by Jack Hucks in an Iowa Show. In the caption it stated that Jack was from Huntsville, AL. Jerry later discovered that Jack had a shop, the Leaf and Petal, in what was then Parkway City Mall. Jerry had been carving for about 5 years and he and Jack soon became friends. Jack had some of Richard Sanders' ducks for sale and Richard and Jack were the only 2 carvers Jerry knew of in the Huntsville area. He and Jack wondered if there might be other woodcarvers close by who would like to form a club. They put a notice in the Huntsville Times asking that interested parties meet them at the public library. Several woodcarvers and a few folks interested in other forms of woodworking showed up. Some of those who were present were Doug Adkins, Mike Stewart, Larry Woodward, Arthur Cary, Harry Garber, Dr. Bill Goodson, Bob McGregor, Wade Wharton, J. D. Pope, Roland White, and Phil and his father Roy Williams. Jack's wife, Ina, was principal of Chapman Middle School and she allowed the fledgling club to meet there. After several meetings, they invited all the wives and families to their very first show, held in the lunchroom at Chapman. They had 15 carvers and around 100 carvings on exhibit.
The club continued to meet at Chapman for several years until Ina's retirement. In the spring and summer of 1982, the club decided it was time to have a show for the public. Parkway City Mall allowed them to exhibit there and the manager even put up $100 for publicity. Pappy (Al Metzger) got a list from Chip Chats of all the carvers that were members of the National Woodcarver Association who lived in Alabama and surrounding states and invited them to participate in the show. Registrants were told that anyone who wanted to mail their carvings in for judging could do so but they had no takers.
All carvings entered were placed in Jack's shop for judging. They had secured Jim Wilsford of Townsend, TN and Jerry Golden from Murfreesboro, TN, to do the judging, after which the carvings were placed on display in the center of the mall. Participants with booths could offer carvings for sale. Prize money was awarded for 1st Place and Best of Show winners and there were 2 Purchase Awards from Coca Cola and the Leo Agency. 1st Place winners in that show were C. Worley from Birmingham, Donald Kochevan, Dave and Elaine Bagley from Bordentown, New Jersey, David Goodell from Prattville, AL, Robert Cumbie from Greenville, AL, Roland White from Rogersville, Doug Adkins, Jerry Sanderson and Jack Hucks all from Huntsville. Roland White won the Purchase Award from Coke and Ronnie Staggs from the Leo Agency. The club continued to exhibit at Parkway City for many years till they moved to the Roundhouse where the shows were held through November 2014. Beginning in 2015, the shows have been held at the Jaycee Community Building in South Huntsville.
