Crave To Carve Carving chalk rock has become Ron Livingston’s passion. “I saw a picture of a Lincoln head my grandpa carved back in 1924 and I wondered if I could do that,” Livingston said. After being employed at packing houses in Rapid City for years, Livingston moved back to live in Springfield and ran a motor grader for Bon Homme County until he retired from the everyday working world two years ago. Fishing became an important part of his daily life but he wondered more and more about carving like his grandpa did. Livingston dismissed wood but found an abundance of chalk rock in the Tabor and Tyndall area under the guise of old farm houses. The source would keep him carving for many years if he was willing to tear the buildings down. He has gotten to be an expert for picking chalk rock chunks which will carve well and not crumble during the process. “Chalk rock is soft and it felt right, perfect for what I wanted to do,” Livingston said. “But not every piece is perfect. I can show you a creek bed full of broken carvings.” Working in packing houses gave Livingston a basis for his skill so using old packing house knives came natural to him. He fashioned the old knives into carving tools, Livingston went to work. He also uses exacto knives and ceramic scoops which work well but he never uses power tools as they will chew up the soft rock. His first creation was something he knew a lot about fish – one of his favorite models. He really knows fish. “I like to carve wildlife, things I see in nature when I’m fishing,” Livingston said. A lot of people ask him to carve a favorite pet but he always says no. He tried a few and they never looked exactly like the loved house pet so he gave it up. Some ideas he has come off the Internet. If he finds a picture he likes or wants a photo of a certain animal or bird on a computer, his mom can print them off and he can use them as a guide. Recently he did a Lake Pelican using a picture. “I probably start with a piece of chalk rock a foot and a half by two feet, which eventually gets whittled down to a finished piece one foot by one foot,” Livingston said. Fish figurines take Over 50? Time for a financial checkup. Rhonda L. Wesseln, Agent 1023 W. 9th Street Yankton, SD 57078 Bus: 605-665-4411 Especially as you near retirement. Be proactive when it comes to your financial health. It’s never too late to get on the right path to a healthy financial future. Let me help you get where you need to be. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.® CALL ME TODAY. rhonda@rhondainsuresyou.com 1001303.2 12vHISVOICEvNOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2017 State Farm, Bloomington, IL