Siouxland Woodturners Plan April Classes, Wig Stands for Cancer Outreach

Five woodturning classes across three weeks. That's the April commitment President Bradley Hakeman and the Siouxland Woodturners have built at Lincoln High School in Sioux Falls, and the club's March issue of The Turning Point lays out the playbook for any turner who wants to replicate it.

The curriculum runs April 9 through 28: Woodturning 101, Pens, Natural Edge Bowls, Hollowing, and Ice Cream Scoops. That sequence spans every skill tier from first-time lathe users to turners ready to tackle end-grain work. Pens and Ice Cream Scoops are the tactical anchors of any outreach calendar; both produce a finished object in a single session and give newcomers something tangible to carry home.

The wig-stand project runs on a parallel track. The April chapter meeting will center on wig-stand demos, walking members through the form before the club delivers finished stands at the Avera Race Against Cancer event in May. It's a clean production pipeline: demo the form in April, put stands in patients' hands in May. Hakeman's President's Message called out members directly for their work getting equipment ready for the education series, a reminder that a five-class calendar requires substantial setup before the first student walks in.

The March meeting, which Hakeman called to order with 29 members present, also included a safety segment built on American Association of Woodturners guidelines. Short, sourced, and on record — the kind of focused program that keeps a club's safety culture active without displacing the main agenda.

To copy this model in the next 15 minutes: contact Lincoln High School's community education office in Sioux Falls about reserving shop time for a turning class series. For the wig-stand pipeline, rough out the basic form on a 3-inch blank and bring it to the April meeting demo. Siouxland Woodturners' full April schedule and contact details are in the current issue of The Turning Point, available through the club's website.