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Saturday, January 25, 2003

By Susan Banks, Post-Gazette Garden Editor

Is life made up of coincidences, or does everything happen for a reason? Ask Jesse Strack, a Washington State native who recently ended up in Beaver County, and you might get a good argument for the fate side of the discussion.

If you are driving along Freedom-Crider Road in New Sewickley, Beaver County, you might be greeted by Jesse Strack's bears. That's Strack, in back on the right, working on an eagle. (Robin Rombach, Post-Gazette photos) Jesse Strack's carvings can be seen, by appointment, by calling David P. Hoffman Co. at 724-728-3817 or e-mailing him at jessestrack@msn.com. They will also be available at the Covered Bridge Farm Market, in the lower portion of the same barn, beginning in April.

When Strack took up chain-saw carving in Washington three years ago, he didn't have a clue that his uncle was getting into the logging business at about the same time in Western Pennsylvania.

Nor did he know that family circumstances would prompt a move east. When Strack, 30, relocated here several months ago to stay with his mother, Martha Strack of Economy, he reconnected with his uncle, David Hoffman of New Sewickley. Strack found that his uncle's business offered him an easy access to raw lumber for his carvings.

According to Strack, finding logs to carve is one of the greatest difficulties faced by chain-saw carvers. It also happened that on Hoffman's farm there was a barn, recently vacated, that was a perfect work space.

So with a place to work, access to lumber and the heavy equipment to move it, all close to his mother's home, it seemed as though things couldn't get any better. But they did.

Before long, motorists were stopping to see who was responsible for the carved bears and other figures standing in front of the barn along busy Freedom-Crider Road, and Strack started selling his pieces.

Though Strack had always planned to continue carving as a full-time occupation, he was shocked that there was enough interest in his work in rural Beaver County for him to earn a living wage. But that's just what happened. Even on a blustery, miserable January day, several cars pulled over in the space of an hour to admire his work.

Strack didn't always plan on making a living carving bears with a chain saw. His dream was to work in the commercial fishing industry in Alaska. Finding that a hard and dangerous way to make a living, he ended up employed in a timber salvage operation in Washington. At that job, he became extremely familiar with a chain saw, and he also became friends with a man named Boaz Backus.

Backus happens to be part of the McVay/Backus clan, pioneers in the relatively young art of chain-saw carving. The entire family -- including grandma -- carves, and they have been at it for more than 40 years. When Strack's job at the salvage operation came to an end, Backus and his family encouraged him to take up carving.

Jesse Strack works on an eagle. His sculptures are burned with a torch to close the grain and wire-brushed. A coat of varnish helps provide further weatherproofing.

Backus runs a shop where he sells the works of many chain-saw sculptors, who are prolific on the West Coast. He took Strack's work, and the pieces started selling right away. He says he was almost immediately able to earn a living from his work, and it's been that way ever since.

Currently, Strack mostly carves bears. At his barn/workshop, he has bears of assorted sizes for sale, including one that is more than 8 feet tall. He carves two types -- a whimsical teddy-bear type and a more realistic-looking one with a prominent snout. For some reason, bears are the "bread and butter" of chain-saw carving, he says.

"People have affection for bears," says Strack, whose repertoire also includes fish, eagles and other animals.

He has even done a life-sized man pulling a salmon into a fishing boat for a competition. Since he has been here, he also has sold two large eagle carvings; one was purchased before it was completed. Strack is also adept at carving benches with bas-relief images on the back, mostly depicting natural subjects.

His pieces run anywhere from $20 to $2,500, but his most popular are 2- to 3-foot-tall bears selling for $75 to $150. The sculptures intended for outdoor display are burned with a torch to close the grain and wire-brushed. A coat of varnish provides further weatherproofing. Strack will do bear sculptures to order. For commissioned work, he requires a 50 percent down payment at the time of the order.

Due to family circumstances, Strack is temporarily splitting his time between Beaver County and Missouri. He plans on spending several days a month working at the barn, where he has left a selection of his carvings for sale. So if you're driving down Freedom-Crider Road anytime soon and you spot a bunch of bears and a man with a chain saw, you'll know why.