Metal sculpture artists honored as grand marshals

The distinct creativity and talent of local artists has been captured in the metal sculptures that span throughout the entire city of Ritzville, and this weekend, five of those artists are to be honored for their contribution to the community.

Lamar Thiel, Jake Harder, Sherryl and Vince Evans, and Annie Trunkle-Smart all have the honor of being named as grand marshals for the annual Ritzville Community Parade on Saturday, Sept. 1. The grand marshals’ float starts the parade at 11 a.m., as the group sits atop a decorated, flatbed trailer donated by Mike Miller and driven by Alan Thompson.

The accumulative work of the five artists has created masterpieces to honor the history and important individuals who helped to shape the community into what it is today. The sculptures stand as a tribute to the past and the uniqueness of each individual piece creates diversity and intrigue for all who visit Ritzville.

The first sculpture dedicated to the town was created by Harder in 1988. The Cowboy is positioned overlooking the intersection at Division Street that welcomes visitors to town and displays the strong cultural history of the area.

When Harder stands beside his statue, a true resemblance is seen, one so striking it causes passerby’s to stop and snap a quick photo of the two cowboys. Harder’s strong ranching history assisted him in creating the perfect cowboy to honor the early settlers and ranchers in Adams County.

Harder estimated that it took him around 200 hours to complete the entire sculpture and he used materials he found on the farm for the embellishments. Though the whole sculpture is important in creating the authentic feel of a true cowboy, Harder started with the most important characteristics.

“I did the boots and hat first,” laughed Harder as he checked the hat. “I welded the hat on good, otherwise someone would’ve run off with it by now.”

Even though Harder completed the Cowboy in 1988, he can still vividly remember the steps he took to create the rugged sculpture. After 24 years, Harder is proud of the condition of the statue and that it seems to be well liked, as he claimed to have seen “lipstick marks” on the cowboy’s cheek.

Thiel’s sculptures can be found scattered throughout the city and show a large variety in his work and talents. He has designed the Plow Boy, Bronco, Wagon Train and Albert “Bert” Kendrick sculptures.

Thiel admits that the hardest sculpture was the Bronco, mainly because he is not a horse lover and never found an interest in the animal. But as an alumnus of Ritzville High School, Thiel understood the importance of creating a permanent sculpture of the mascot.

He created the Bronco based on a toy horse given to him by a friend that was a scale model of a regular horse. After creating a template, Thiel created the masterpiece that has stood proud in front of the school since 1988.

The first of Thiel’s sculptures is the Plow Boy, which welcomes visitors to town and stands tall inside the raised median at the intersection of Division Street and Bauman Street. The Plow Boy was also built in 1988, and after completing two sculptures in the same year; Thiel did not construct another until 1998.

His next addition to the city is the Wagon Train located on Railroad Avenue and donated by the Wagon Train Descendants’ Association. His final contribution to the city is Bert Kendrick, who is depicted constantly photographing Main Avenue and watching the sunrise each morning.

Vince and Sherryl Evans were also part of the first sculptures in the town and each metal statue has different significance to them as well as the community. The Evans’ are being recognized for their creation of the Pioneer Woman, Shontz Schuler and Philip Ritz.

The first sculpture that the Evans created is the Pioneer Woman, who stands aside the Cowboy with a baby and hoe in hand. Sherryl said they decided to create the Pioneer Woman because the ladies in town starting complaining that there were not any women, only the Cowboy and the Plow Boy.

Sherryl said the Evans became involved because, “There was a committee that was formed in town that decided that they wanted to make metal sculptures and I was on the committee.”

The partnership of the couple allowed them to use their expertise as individuals to create outstanding artwork they could both be proud of. Sherryl would design the prototypes with cardboard or similar material to figure out the look of the statue.

After completing the prototype, she would take it apart piece by piece. Vince would use the individual, to scale, pieces to create the end product. As a farmer, Vince was knowledgeable and well versed with welding, allowing him the ability to create the metal artwork.

The second sculpture created by the Evans was Philip Ritz, the namesake of Ritzville, in 2005. While the Philip Ritz statue was important to the couple, the last sculpture they created together carries the most significance to the family and their heritage.

Shontz Schuler is recognized as the local contractor who built many structures in the Ritzville community and is known for building Ritzville’s Carnegie Library. But for Sherryl, Schuler is much more than a contractor: he is her great-grandfather.

“That was fun to do,” Sherryl said of the Shontz Schuler statue. “I knew the stories of him coming here and that he was a contractor, and a quiet, well-respected man.”

In 2008, Lind resident Trunkel-Smart was asked to bring her creativity and artistry to Ritzville by designing a sculpture for the Dr. Frank R. Burroughs’ Home.

Trunkel-Smart started experimenting with metal sculptures with the help of her husband who taught her to use materials from the farm to create artwork. Today she runs a business called Blowtorch Annie’s, which designs a variety of unique metal sculptures.

Trunkel-Smart said when she was first asked, she willingly agreed, but did not know much about Dr. Frank R. Burroughs. After talking to community members and researching his history, she began to work on a sculpture to dedicate to him.

After about two months, Trunkel-Smart completed the elaborate, whimsical memorial for the Ritzville museum.

“I talked to several people that told me about him and that his favorite thing was delivering babies,” Trunkel-Smart explained. “I added a key on the side of the wagon, and a mail slot on the other side to symbolize his other roles in the community, as the postmaster and the mayor.”

Trunkel-Smart says that the children on the wagon are her favorite part of the sculpture as they add the character and enthusiasm that was important for the doctor. She said she appreciated the opportunity to construct a sculpture for the Ritzville community and hopes to continue the community involvement by creating historic statues for Lind as well.

Together, the five individuals will greet community members and visitors at the beginning of the parade on Saturday morning. Collectively the artists have created sculptures that will continue to be important symbols of the Ritzville community.