Memorial Day

Jack Schwartz celebrated a birthday on Saturday – 102 years old. So, they threw him a little party – The Sequoia Woodturners Club of Central California, a collection of mostly senior citizens who love to repurpose beautiful chunks of dead trees into objets d’art — fruit bowls and weed pots (flower pots) and rolling pins and astonishingly large platters. Useful and beautiful stuff carved from olive and carob, walnut, maple, teakwood or Pacific madrone, all turned on a wood lathe.

Jack rarely misses a meeting and everybody knows that the front row right aisle seat is his for keeps.  Sadly, he doesn’t turn much wood any more — his long time friend and round-trip driver from Hanford, Don Wilcox, reports that all of Jack’s stuff is still in his garage, the lathe, tools, bandsaw, sanders and varnishes, but he just doesn’t have the stamina to wrestle a respectable pile of wood chips off a chunk of claro walnut on it’s way to becoming a small vase or lidded box, anymore. But that’s okay, Jack shows up to see his friends and to see their work. Last year the Sequoia Woodturners Club voted to make him a lifetime member, now he gets free dues for life. Can’t do that again this year, so they got him a birthday cake, instead.

            He smiled and laughed and had a bite. With a little encouragement he’ll tell the well-sanded story about being captured by the Japanese in the Pacific on the third day of World War II – that was seventy-six years ago, recalled as clearly as seven layer shellac finish on a box elder bowl. He spent three years and nine months in Japanese prisoner of war camps and wasn’t rescued until two weeks after the end of the war.

Jack Schwartz retired from the U.S. Navy with the rank of Commander. He was director of Public Works for the city of Hanford until 1980; then served on the Kings County Grand Jury.

Memorial Day was invented for guys like Jack.

Even though he doesn’t turn much wood anymore he says he enjoys being around those who do. Lucky us, the world keeps turning. Jack Schwartz had something to do with that, too.