Although Russell is an experienced carver, this is his first attempt at fish carving. His experience in carving was confined to songbirds, decoys and shorebirds. When his daughter was born, his emphasis shifted away from carving for a period of nearly 18 years, He is an avid fly fisherman and a member of the International Fly Fishing Association (IFFA).
In October, 2006 Russell received a call from the head of the IFFA, Mr.Bob Kloskowski asking if Russell knew of anyone who could create a replica of large Brooktrout which his friend Mr. Bill McManis had caught on a mutual fly fishing trip in Montana. The fish was 22 inches long and had a 14 inch girth, a truly wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime catch. Bob and Bill had measured the fish and had taken a few photos before releasing the Brookie so, hopefully, another angler might experience the thrill of catching him another day.
While Russell had belonged to the NFCG, he had barely begun planning what his first fish carving would be. Little did he know that his first one would most likely be one of his most difficult and memorable! Not long after the first call from Bob, Russel received another message with the sad news that Bill McManis had contracted cancer. Russell had lost both parents to this terrible disease and decided right there and then that this may well be a "calling" and an excellent opportunity to dive with both feet into the world of fish carving. He read numerous books and articles on carving of the Brookie and, armed with a couple of reference photos and the measurements provided by Bob, He carved by the seat of his pants and made good progress early on when he received the wonderful message that Bill's Cancer had improved. This good news, combined with the unfortunate loss of his job, removed much of the focus on the carving. So, for 3 years the Brookie sat on a shelf with nothing more being done. However, the shelf was in his office and served as a constant reminder of his original mission.
Late this year (2009) Russell decided that even though Bill's health was improved, he needed to complete what he started. At this time the carving part of the fish was nearly completed and it was now down to the painting process. Intimidated by thepainting process, he chose instead to improve the carving itself by removing some of the fins and re-carving and re-attaching them. Now, it's time to paint or cut bait, right? Although he was reluctant to begin the process of using the airbrush, he pressed on and, with practice, and a little support from his fellow NFCG and FC2 carvers, he plunged ahead. The painting process went much better than he had hoped for and he soon found the airbrush was not nearly the "beast" he had imagined and he was beginning to really enjoy using it. He made a committment to Bob that he would have the carving completed, and ready for presenting to Bill by Thanksgiving.
Russell is a man of his word! The carving was completed, and mounted, on time and has been presented to a man whom Russell has never met, but is forever linked through a wonderful piece of art which came straight from Russells' heart.
In Russells' words "I'm grateful to the man (Bill) who provided me with the inspiration to follow through with this project, the talent God provided to me, the people who he has connected me with for help and the support of my wife and kids"
