Athletic director is woodworker in spare time

Mary Flande with a juniper lectern she crafted for Sisters High School. photo by Rongi Yost

Sisters High School's athletic director Mary Flande has enjoyed woodworking since she was a child. She has turned that enjoyment into a full fledged hobby.

At age nine, Flande joined 4H with her mother at the helm as troop leader. The troop was involved in several areas of 4H but Mary's favorite was the woodworking group called "Sawdusters."

The entire first year of woodworking the troop was not allowed to use power tools on their projects. Flande recalls being very frustrated with her mother for being so adamant about the rule.

Flande fondly recalls her very first project.

"It was a tongue-in-groove cedar toy box," she said. "I cut all the pieces with a hand saw, used a hand held drill to drill the holes and since I wasn't allowed to use any power tools I even had to hand sand the entire toy box."

Flande continued her involvement in the woodworking 4H club all through high school. Her projects included a whole range of items including toy boxes, end tables and coffee tables.

she recalls making a baby cradle and an eight foot clown slide.

"You'd walk up the clown's legs and then slide down his back," said Flande.

"It's just a hobby for me now," said Flande. "I just play. I really enjoy making things, giving them away and watching the enjoyment others get from them. I don't do anything fancy. All my projects are pretty simple."

Flande's projects might be "simple" but they are also beautiful works of art. The lecterns at Sisters High School and Sisters Middle School are examples.

Flande designed and built the juniper lectern currently used in the high school.

"I just promised myself I'd build a lectern for the high school," she said. "I wanted us to have one that was built out of our native wood."

Flande completed the lectern in October 2002. Flande said it took two full days just to put the pieces of wood together and then another day for sanding and finishing. It took another full week to hand-rub four coats of oil finish into the wood.

Flande said she took four to six inch pieces of lumber and then laminated the pieces together. The SHS logo was laser-burned into the front of the lectern by Moments Remembered in Sisters.

After completing the lectern at the high school Mary thought it would be nice for the middle school to have a new lectern for the new facility. Flande got busy and completed a blue pine lectern in December of 2003.

Flande attributes her love of woodworking to her family.

"My family had a tremendous influence on me," said Flande. "My mother is a woodworker too and she just learned through trial and error. My mom also drew the blueprints for our family home and my parents built our house from the ground up."

Whenever Mary's mother comes for a visit the two enjoy working together in Mary's shop.