Alberni Valley
NEWS
Page 4
Class hears poignant message from Ernie Crey.
Page 7
Doctor urges people to donate blood, enter contest.
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THURSDAY, OCT. 31, 2013
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EDITORIAL
Page A8
LETTERS
Page A9
SPORTS
Page A21 ENTERTAINMENT Page A22
Vol. 8 No. 10
BC CLASSIFIEDS
Pages A18-20
AUTUMN TANNING WAWMEESH G. HAMILTON
ALBERNI VALLEY NEWS
L
onnie Olsen has the appearance of a grunge rocker and a man of the land at the same time. Dressed in a plaid work shirt, thick work jeans and cowboy boots “that I’ve had forever”, Olsen strides past compost buckets lined up on his back porch and down the stairs into the back yard. Olsen removes the cover off a container and pulls out a dripping wet deer hide that is dotted with bits of fur and flesh. He drapes the hide over a slanted wooden pole with a wet slap, swings one leg over the fleshing beam to brace himself, then begins drawing downward on the – Lonnie Olsen hide with a scraping tool. “I’m removing the fur and bits of flesh off it to smooth it out,” Olsen says. “This is the perfect time of year to do this. You can’t in the summer because of the heat and the smell.” Olsen provides a running commentary as he prepares the deer hide that he’ll later cut into sections to make shoes, handbags, belts and wallets that he sells through his business, Smokin’ Hides. “This used to be a hobby of mine but now I’m trying to start a business out of it. It’s a pretty big transition,” he said.
Lonnie Olsen brings traditional hide curing methods into 21st century.
‘This is the perfect time of year to do this.’
Lonnie Olsen stitches a leather pouch in his home workshop in Port Alberni. WAWMEESH G. HAMILTON ALBERNI VALLEY NEWS
Continued / A3
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