What began as a hobby for family and friends has now turned into a labor of love for a couple of veterans who want nothing more than to give back to their brothers and sisters in arms.
Shingle Springs, California resident and Army vet Bob Burrow, 88, carves walking sticks out of manzanita branches and varnishes them, an idea he says he got from Jim Fowler, a friend who sells the branches at a local flea market.
“A friend at the flea market showed me how to make them,” Burrow said. “I tried giving them away, and then I met Jim and it really took off.”
Burrow first made 70 of the sticks, giving them to family and friends. To his surprise, they caught on and now he makes them for veterans.
“It’s a way to thank them for their service,” he explains.
Over the past three years, Burrow has made 184 of the unique sticks.
“I really enjoy making them,” he said. “It’s the best feeling in the world.”
Navy vet Fowler, 70, said each of the sticks is one-of-a-kind because of the manzanita wood’s color and shape. The sticks range anywhere from 36 to 50 inches in length and take Burrow a day to make.
“There are no two sticks the same,” said Fowler. “His heart is really into it.”
Fowler and Burrow were introduced to each other about 18 months ago by a mutual acquaintance and soon became friends. When Burrow told his new friend about his efforts to make walking sticks and give them to veterans, Fowler’s response was immediate:
“I told him I was in,” he said.
Fowler takes the sticks nearly everywhere he goes, giving them to any veteran he spots who is using a cane and may need one. Recently, he ran into a vet who lives in Guam and gave him a stick.
“He said couldn’t believe how beautiful it is and couldn’t wait to get home so the people there could see it,” said Fowler.
The friends say the reaction they get when giving out the sticks is payment enough for their efforts.
“The reward of this, the people are flabbergasted,” Fowler said. “They look at this beautiful stick and say, `it’s free?’”
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