Century-old elm finds new life as a table

Published 2:00 pm Saturday, May 6, 2006

The wood was salvaged after the tree was felled on the BHS campus.

As an artist, Cecil Ross uses the tools of his trade to give life to otherwise inanimate chunks of wood.

It makes sense, then, that Ross was called upon to resuscitate by way of art an elm tree cut down on the Bainbridge High School campus three years ago.

“A friend of mine happened to be walking by when they cut it down,” Ross said of the elm, estimated to be 100 years old when it came down.

The tree was removed, amid some controversy, because it was in poor health and was beginning to obstruct the entrance to one of the school buildings.

Knowing the elm wasn’t indigenous to the island, and thus probably endowed with a storied past, Ross’s friend took action.

“He called me up and asked what we could do to save the wood,” Ross said. “I figured I might as well make something out of it.”

Ross tracked down the wood and spared it from annihilation by chipper, bringing pieces of it back to his studio.

There it sat until Jamie Walter, a counselor at the high school, saw the wood at Ross’s studio exhibit in 2004 and thought it had the potential to be something more.

She, too, had been sad to see the tree go, but figured the wood was long gone before she visited Ross’s studio.

Meanwhile, she and Alice Tawresey, who together co-chaired the high school’s senior cruise in 2002, were looking for a way to spend a surplus of funds from that year’s trip.

Tawresey said they considered other options, like an exhibit at the new wing planned for the high school, but at the time were unsure whether the facility would be built.

“We wanted to use the money for something concrete and visible that would be a benefit to the school,” Tawresey said. “There was some sadness expressed at the loss of the tree and we saw an opportunity to make it into something positive.”

So they turned to Ross, who had yet to make use of the wood.

On May 15, Walter and Tawresey will present, on behalf of the class of 2002, a new table, created from the core of the elderly elm, to the high school.

“It’s always great when a class presents a gift that contributes to the legacy of the school,” Principal Brent Peterson said. “For this class to incorporate part of a tree that used to be on the campus is a really wonderful gesture.”

The table is about 5 feet long, 3 feet wide and 3 feet tall, though not perfectly symmetrical because Ross wanted the piece to have a natural feel.

“It’s very woodsy,” Ross said. “It’s a striking piece of furniture. I tried to leave as many of the natural elements as I could because I wanted it to be clear that this was made from an actual living thing.”

Ross isn’t sure how long it took him to complete the project, but said it had been about a year and a half since Walter first approached him with the idea.

“My pieces always take a long time to come together,” Ross said. “I never count man hours because I’m usually working on several projects at once.”

The table will reside permanently at the high school and will be used to display student artwork.

Walter and Tawresey are excited to see the tree is “coming home,” particularly because it was once a fixture on the campus.

“This is a very cool thing, especially because many of the kids from that class will be graduating from college this year,” she said. “The timing is perfect.”

Tawresey said the tree was symbolic.

“I love the idea that the class of 2002 can contribute to something like this to the school,” she said. “Trees are so important to people on the island and this will serve as a lasting memorial.”