Project Literacy, Douglas County

We will soon post many of the success stories we have shared through our newsletters.

Are you a former student of Project Literacy? E-mail us your success story to share at

Small Successes

Not all tutor success stories end perfectly in a diploma or G.E.D. Some successes are measured in new beginnings, in hope and small goals met. James (not his real name) had been raised in a Project in Los Angeles and eventually dropped out of school. He couldn’t read well enough to get a job to help his family. No one in the family could read well.

When James was 18 his mother was killed in an accident. His father used the settlement money to move his family to Oregon. When I started tutoring James, he had trouble concentrating and was easily distracted so we studied in a reading room facing away from the windows.

James didn’t get his G.E.D. before he left to take a full time job. But he learned to fill out job applications and got his driver’s license. He could keep an appointment calendar. He had read books three grades ahead of his beginning level. Best of all, James finally knew he was capable of more. He had hopes and plans for his future.

New Directions

In February 2004, the Oregon State Employment Service received funds from the Federal Trade Act. This enabled 18 newly unemployed timber and mill workers to come to PLDC. Each of their skills in reading, writing and math were assessed, and tutoring provided to prepare for the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) of tests, in preparation for entering college or other training.

They spent 20 hours each week with tutors at PLDC for classroom work. This is a total of 1440 student hours during 4 weeks and a total of 175 tutor hours.

As of March 19, 2004, 10 students went to Umpqua Community College; 2 to Southwestern Community College (Coos Bay); and one as a heavy equipment operator in Creswell.

During the year 2003, PLDC has served 195 clients with volunteer tutoring hours of 5,691.

Some Dreams Come True

The year of 2005 I spent a lot of time at Toketee Lake fishing. My friend and I would sit in our lawn chairs watching the birds on the lake while we were fishing.

Well, being a wood carver, I notice lots of things in nature. Every weekend, sitting there fishing and looking across the lake, I noticed this eagle would fly around the lake and all at once this eagle would dive down into the lake and come up with a fish. I mean a big fish! I told my fishing buddy, “I wish we could catch fish that easy. We would be up there cooking fish and potatoes right now.”

Well, week after week of fishing, when I went to bed at night, I could still see that eagle catching fish. So being a wood carver, I wanted to carve that eagle with a fish in its talons.

So one day sitting in class at Project Literacy, I told my teacher, Eva, about this eagle that I would like to carve. I wanted to carve it full size with its wings spread and a fish in its talons like the one I saw at Toketee Lake. She said, “Why don’t you carve it.” I never carved anything that big before. I would take a big piece of wood. So I thought about it for a week or so, then I said, “Why not?”

I knew I would have to have a big piece of wood, and I knew there were three sugar pine trees that the Forest Service had cut down about five years ago to make shakes, and there was some big chunks left over. I knew I would have to get a permit to get some wood. About two years ago, I got some wood after I got my permit and I carved out a big fish. So I drove up to Apple Creek to look at the wood that was laying there about five years, to see if it was any good, and it was still good.

Not knowing that I could get a permit, I asked my brother-in-law to go down to the Forest Service with me, because he worked there for 37 years and he knows everyone there. So we walked out with my permit, it was only $20.00 for the wood permit.

Well, now that I got my permit I started looking through books for pictures of eagles. So I drew and drew pictures of eagles until I had what I wanted it to look like. How big do I make it? I decided about 66” wings spread would be big enough. I drew it out on a big piece of cardboard. When I would get up in the woods I would have a drawing of the size of the eagle I wanted to carve.

So one weekend my son and son-in-law went with me to cut the wood and get the wood down the hill to my pickup. Well, I know now that I got the wood there was nothing that would stop me because I am like a beaver when I get going (gung ho, wood chips flying everywhere). I used my chainsaw when I could and then my hatchet would be the next thing I would use. I would use my gouges and hunting knife and pocket knife.

The reason for the cardboard drawing of the eagle is that when I am up there in the woods, I would have a picture of the full size that I could measure from. So when I slab out the slabs, they would be the right sizes. I did not want to come back home, and find out the wood was not big enough to make the eagle.

It was lucky that I had enough wood left over so that when I decided to carve two babies chick I had the slabs. I was not planning to carve the babies until later. I am glad I did. The babies add to the carving. Nothing like a fish dinner. I couldn’t find pictures of the eagle chicks, so I just imagined what they would look like.

I have been taking pictures as the eagle progressed. At first I was going to have the eagle hanging from the ceiling. I got to thinking that if I put it in the Fair next year, I would not have a place to hang it. So, that’s when I decided to put it on a stand, with two babies in a nest. When I was up the North Umpqua, bow hunting, I got some volcanic rock for the nest and some old dry pieces of tree stand to hang the mother eagle on to make it look like she was flying.

Well, I finally got the carving done. So I had to “woodburn” the eagle. That gave the feathers a realistic look. That takes a long time to texture, I guess about 30 hours of just wood burning. It took me about four months to do the whole job. But I didn't time myself. Time does not mean anything. I carved whenever I felt like it, so it was no job, because I enjoy every minute of it. That is the first question people ask me, how long did it take. I tell them time don’t mean anything when you are having fun.

I been carving most of my life, usually I carve some things about a foot tall.

Well when I look back at the eagle I have carved, I can picture myself sitting on the bank of Toketee Lake watching the eagle catching its dinner. The North Umpqua is a peaceful place to be.

Well I hope when all you fishing man see this wood carving of the eagle, it reminds you of your favorite fishing lake like it does me.

Well I worked at Roseburg Forest Products about 41 years and got laid off. So I am going back to school to learn how to read and write at Project Literacy.

Well, any way my teacher, Eva, said I could bring the wood carving and have it on display here at school. Well, driving through town with the eagle in back of my pickup, I had lots of people honking their horn and giving me the O.K. sign.

One man stayed with me all the way through town. He honked his horn at me and rubbed his fingers together like he wanted to buy it. I didn’t have any intention of selling it. I want to show it and maybe put it in the Fair next year.

I give thanks to God for the gift he gave me. So some dreams do come true.

DH, The Wild man of the North Umpqua
10-17-2005