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View Full Version : A Call to Arms to All Turners, Please help us



Keith Outten
10-31-2007, 8:46 AM
Forgive me for asking once again for your support but we need your help.

The Freedom Pens Project is in need of pens to ship to our Servicemen and women serving in the Middle East combat areas. The number of pens we have been able to ship this year has decreased well below our normal levels for this time of year but there is still time before the holidays to get pens to those who are serving their country.

WoodCraft has decided to leave the Freedom Pens Project for their own reasons so we won't have the pens that we would normally receive from our Veterans Day Turn-A-Thon that WoodCraft has hosted for the last three years. I have been unable to secure a replacement host for November 11th this year so I am asking all of you to stay home and turn pens in your own workshops this year. Our annual Turn-A-Thon traditionally provides the large number of pens we ship early to mid December in an effort to make sure as many or our Sons and Daughters who are serving their country receive a gift from home during the holidays.

We are now able to ship pens directly to the Morale Centers and several Hospitals located in Iraq and Afghanistan. We also are providing pens for many of the Military hospitals here at home that are taking care of our war wounded. Although we have been able to keep up with the demand from units requesting pens we will soon fall short of pens to keep up with demand and will not have any pens to ship for the holidays this year.

Please take a few moments of your time to read some of the email messages I have been posting in the Freedom Pens Forum here at The Creek. I think you will be convinced that our efforts are appreciated and as time progresses our gifts mean more than ever to our Countrymen who are serving in harms way to protect us here at home.

There is still plenty of time to order a few pen kits so you can join us this year for our first At Home Turn-A-Thon. My entire family will be turning pens this year and I have plenty of pen blanks ready to support my workshop Turn-A-Thon here in Virginia.

Please help us to spread the word and keep this project going strong, lets not give up on those who are willing to risk so much for us here at home. We owe these people a debt we can never repay, they will be more than happy just to hear someone say thanks for your service and that is the message that every Freedom Pen sends. Many of you have been in their shoes, I know you haven't forgotten how frightening it can be and how lonely it is to be away from home during the holidays.

Thanks for your consideration and your support.

Keith Outten

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Ken Fitzgerald
10-31-2007, 9:31 AM
Keith.....if I have my new lathe setup by then I"ll join you.

Benjamin Dahl
10-31-2007, 10:28 AM
Keith, would you like any pens or just the red, white and blue corian version?
Ben

Dave Bonde
10-31-2007, 10:40 AM
Ben I can answer that, any pens you turn are great. Keith Riverbend will have some comming your way ASAP. Dave

Nancy Laird
10-31-2007, 11:35 AM
I just spoke to Albuquerque Woodcraft, and they WILL have a Turn-a-Thon on Saturday, November 10, at the store, from 9 to 5. The lathe classroom will be open, and each participant will get one pen kit and one set of blanks for free to turn for the Freedom Pen Project. They will also accept for shipment any pens that are turned at home for the project.

The gentleman I spoke with has no idea why Woodcraft corporate has pulled out (and really wasn't aware that they had done so)---as late as this past summer corporate reimbursed the local store for 100 pen kits for the Ruidoso group to turn Freedom Pens.

Since Albuquerque is not a "company" store, but is locally-owned, they aren't compelled to fall under the corporate constraints. Since the owner and his wife are retired Army and have a daughter who was/is active military, they are big boosters of the program, so I don't foresee Albuquerque abandoning the project at all.

Bottom line: come one, come all to Woodcraft on November 10 for a turn-a-thon!!!!

Nancy (51 days)

Keith Outten
10-31-2007, 12:35 PM
Ben, as Dave said any pens will do. We ship pens made from just about every kind of material you can imagine.

Dave, thanks...your school has been there for us for a very long time and we appreciate your help.

Nancy, my local WoodCraft plans to support the new pens for troops program that WoodCraft Corporate has started. Store managers have the option to support Freedom Pens but if they do I doubt the corporate office will be providing free kits and pen blanks. I was told that any pens turned in to Woodcraft would be sent to their corporate office in West Virginia. I'm sure they will welcome our Freedom Pens Turners to their stores but I doubt the pens that are made will be shipped to us.

There are so many rumors flying around I don't have a clue what the truth is, I only know that we will be without pens to ship to the Middle East unless our "At Home TAT" is supported by those who helped us start Freedom Pens. If I had been given more time to react to the changes I would have been able to arrange another host, as it was I spent my time working my way up the ladder with Lowes looking for approval and Lowes failed to respond at all.

It's understandable that I am not a fan of Woodcraft these days, or whomever is running the company now. So they lost one customer, no big deal I guess but I can't in good conscience purchase from my local store knowing that a percentage of my money will go to the West Virginia office that pulled the plug on us.

I do wish them well with their new Veterans Day pens for troops program but the Freedom Pens Project is a year round project. The loss of our Veterans Day TAT may very well take all the wind out of our sails and I would hate to see that happen. So i am asking everyone to please continue to support our Non-Profit Freedom Pens Project.

:(

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Gary Herrmann
10-31-2007, 2:22 PM
If my arm will allow it, I'll make a few.

Jim Shaver, Oakville Ont
10-31-2007, 7:09 PM
Best of luck to you all,


I have mine going to our own Canadian effort/version;)

Jon Behnke
11-01-2007, 4:23 PM
I would be interested in turning some pens for the cause, just need to be pointed in the right direction. Where do the kits come from? I have plenty of blanks so that's not an issue. Where do I ship the finished pens? Are there any packaging issues? My local Woodcraft (Milwaukee) is also supporting the pens for troops program, I may have to bring this up at the next turning club meeting.

Ken Dolph
11-01-2007, 5:07 PM
Keith et al,

We have shipped about 4.5 tons of the Red White and Blue Corian in the last two years. We are still shipping about 3 - 24 pound boxes a week. We just finished half of the material that duPont donated. We are happy to ship more.

Thanks all

I am glad that I can be a part of this project even though I do not turn.

Ken

Keith Outten
11-01-2007, 6:35 PM
Jon,
You will find all the information you need in the Freedom Pens Forum here at SawMill Creek. We are happy to have you join us making Freedom Pens.

Ken,
It is the collective efforts of all involved that make Freedom Pens work, thanks for your continued support.

To those of you who may not know, Ken Dolph has been our red white and blue Corian provider for a very long time now. The job of receiving, storing and shipping Corian to those who want to use it to make pens is tough to do and Ken has been doing it for a long time.

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Earl Reid
11-01-2007, 9:20 PM
I started my own TAT today, I turned 24 pens and will keep going. hope to get at least 200 more done.
Hope everyone will help out
Earl:) :) :) :)