Woodcarving wiz

POST FALLS — Some people have a gift for woodcarving.

One tour through Cy Franks' house is all the proof you need: He definitely has it.

"You either got it or you haven't," the 93-year-old said Thursday.

Franks immediately had a knack for the woodcarving craft when he first picked up a knife and block of wood.

“I was young yet and I could learn things,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “I was only 70 when I started.”

Now, 23 years later, just about every wall, shelf, nook and cranny of the Post Falls home he shares with his partner, Sarah Haeg, is filled with intricately carved and painted mustached cowboys, seasoned Native Americans, grizzled mountain men with pipes hanging from their mouths, red-capped gnomes, white-bearded sea captains, cottonwood bark cottages, fez-topped Shriners, smiling Santa Clauses and even a self-portrait with Franks wearing a Consolidated Freightways hat referencing his 40 years as a trucker.

“I carve different on different things. I start on something and I just carve it until I finish.

“You gotta do something,” he said with a quiet chuckle.

Franks easily has more than 1,000 hand-carved pieces in his current collection, not including the gifts he's given away through the years or the many partially complete projects he has yet to tackle.

The carving studio in his basement is impeccably organized. Every chisel, knife, grinder and guidebook is in its proper place.

"You have to keep your tools organized or you’re totally lost when you start carving," Franks said. "You don’t want to have to look for a tool. You just pick up one and you carve with it."

A dazzling array of colorful ribbons is mounted on the shop wall, showcasing the many awards Franks has received at woodcarving shows mostly in Spokane and western Montana — first place, second place, best of division, best of advanced and more.

Franks said he first was introduced to woodcarving when he happened to run into a coworker at a show in Missoula.

“I thought, ‘Well, what the heck.’ It looked like fun, so I started in, and it seemed to be something that was easy to do,” Franks said. "As a result, I collected a few ribbons."

Franks, a widower, even met Haeg through woodcarving. She has recently also taken up the craft. The couple have been together nearly five years.

“I went to the carving group,” Haeg said, a smile growing on her face. "Some of us ladies went. We wanted to see all these carvers, and so I thought, ‘That looks like fun.’ I’m a widow, so I thought I would be very safe with all of these old men. And little did I know."

Wayne Schumacher, a fellow North Idaho Woodcarver, is one of Franks' many woodcarving friends and fans.

"It's been great to be able to visit,” Schumacher said. “We, within our carving club, think the world of him."

At one time, Franks would carve morning to evening, even skipping lunch when he was in the zone. He has since slowed down in his carving activities. A block of butternut wood sketched with the outline of a bear awaits his chisel, as do a smattering of other projects waiting to come to life through his carving talent.

“There comes a time when you think, ‘I’m getting too old for this stuff,’” he said.

He may not be as enthusiastic as he once was, but he intends to finish each piece he started.

"I’ll get the paint on them, and I’ll probably even carve some more," he said. "I’ve always got something going."