Rincon Country West RV Resort launches “ladies night at the wood shop” event

TUCSON, Ariz., February 2017 — There’s a new activity for snowbirds at Rincon Country West RV Resort this winter. It’s so new, in fact, it could be the first of its kind in Arizona.

It’s called “Ladies Night at Wood Shop.”

“It’s occurring every Wednesday,” said Dennis Lynch, a snowbird from Washington state who serves as president of Wood Shop Club at Rincon Country West. He said 18 women are taking the class, where they learn details of everything from how to select and purchase wood to using the specialized woodcutting tools.

“For most of them, their goal is to make a bowl,” Lynch said, adding that serving bowls typically range from 4 to 8 inches in width and about three inches deep.

Lynch noted that the biggest shock for some women isn’t the challenge of carving wood, but the cost of the supplies.

The wood shop at Rincon Country West RV Resort is one of the largest in Arizona. Wood Shop members make everything from bowls to rocking chairs and cedar lined chests.

Jo Ann Mickelson, executive director of the Arizona Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds, said Rincon Country RV Resort may be the only RV resort in the state that offers a specialized wood shop class for women.

“We’re not aware of any other RV resorts that have a specialized wood shop class for women, although this could change at any time,” she said.

But women are increasingly moving into other activities traditionally associated with men.

Jim Heimbach, a snowbird from California who serves as president of Rincon Country’s Jewelry Arts Club, said about 100 snowbirds are members of the club, and about a third of them are women. “We’re getting more women all the time,” he said, noting that four or five years ago, less than 20 percent of the club’s members were women.

Heimbach added, “Women do the same things that men do. They do casting of parts. They do chain making and jewelry fabrication. They make bracelets. They do what’s called metal clay. They do glass fusion. They do lapidary, which is taking big rocks and cutting them up into small rocks and polishing them so they can be used as jewelry settings.”

Rincon Country West RV Resort is one of many Arizona RV resorts with interesting volunteer activities that is affiliated with the Arizona Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds. For more information about Arizona RV resorts that cater to snowbirds, please visit GoCampingInArizona.com.