I was first given this story by one of the Big Sandy High School neighbors because they saw Gwen Kane out there working fixing up the chair-saw Pioneer by the school parking lot. I immediately went and found Gwen working on the statue again and asked her if I could interview her. She laughed like she always does, and then said, "after the project was finished." It took three and a half weeks, not all day nor in the heat of the day, but she worked on it till the sun went down.
Five years ago, Gwen Kane was hired to be a substitute teacher for K-12, of which she said, "I love very much." Every day she went to the high school, she was reminded of the Pioneer and the Covered wagon. Gwen kept thinking about what needed to be done to repair everything. "So, one day, I went to the office and asked permission to adopt the task. I told them I didn't have a definite plan, yet it would be much better than when I finished."
"A couple of days later, I went outside and saw water in the driveway. I called Tim and Larry, and then the following day, I had a big hole 6-ft deep." She continued excitedly to tell how she solved the problem of how to fix the Pioneer, "I asked Tim what kind of dirt he was digging up "Gumbo" was my answer and it's all over the country. After wondering what I was going to use for some time because all the parts of the Pioneer were cracked and several pieces were missing, such as the back of his head, knee, foot, backside, and a finger. It was then I had an AA-ha moment. Gumbo was used by the settlers to chink the logs in the cabins they built. I took a big bucket of gumbo and rebuilt all the broken and missing parts on the Pioneer. I decided to detail instead of a total stain finish. It was like he came alive." One time when a small girl saw the new Pioneer she said, 'Mommy does he talk.'"
She continued to detail the sign making it stand out with the school colors.
The covered wagon also had a complete renovation. The wagon has a sealer on it, and Gwen repainted the wheels and the rims. The canvas top came off, and it was cleaned and repositioned to give it an authentic look, with oval openings in the front and the back. The chicken wire was removed, for it served no purpose once the bows were all bent back to the shape by Jordon Schwarzbach. He had the strength and the ability to fix them. Hooks were then put on both sides to connect the tarp to the wagon.
"I couldn't leave the rocks the way they were because the rocks had sunk into the ground, and some weren't even visible. They were full of weeds, garbage, and dead debris. After removing all the rocks, she took liquid weed killer over the area and placed four layers of mesh on the ground to keep the weeds from coming back. Jordon helped by picking up some of the bigger rocks.
She also worked on cleaning the fire escape.
Lastly, I put a stain on the concrete for tying it all together in appearance.
The second part of the story is Gwen will be 80 next month. I asked how she had the energy, and she laughed and said, "I'm Norwegian. I've been this energetic my whole life." She went on to say why she has such a powerful positive approach to life. She lost her husband, her mother, her horse, and her dog. She lost them all, but she is thankful to God because He gave her such a wonderful life.
She loves working at the school. "I know the kids like me, and I love the kids!"
"This project was to be a donation from me to the school I graduated from in 1958." Dave Clarke, a Chainsaw artist, created the Pioneer in 1990. It was initially for a showcase for the Stihl chainsaws, which Ron Otto was selling at the time. Dave Clarke donated the sculpture to the school.
She truly believes her purpose in life, "is being a caregiver, not only for people but for all things that I can better for others."
She wants to thank all the people of Big Sandy who share the spirit they have for making Big Sandy look better with nice yards for neighbors to appreciate, discarding stuff that is an eyesore, and taking pride in doing so.
She ended by saying, "God bless America."
