Church unveils wooden carving more than 20 years in the making

In 1983, Plano resident Russ Aikins saw a painting during a mission trip and was struck with inspiration.

The painting, which depicted Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, would make a great subject for a wooden relief carving, Aikins thought. What Aikins didn't realize was that it would take him 29 years to turn the idea in his head into reality.

On Sunday, Aikins and the First United Methodist Church of Plano will dedicate the 4-foot-by-2 1/2-foot wooden carving in a ceremony after the 11 a.m. worship service. The piece was delivered to the church on Monday and will be featured prominently outside the doors to the sanctuary.

"I don't know how many thousands of hours it has taken," Aikins said, adding he had no idea what he was in for when he began working on the carving more than two decades ago. "I quit counting at 1,000 hours when I finally just said enough is enough. In the last four years I have been working out of a violin shop in downtown Plano because I was having a hard time focusing and freeing up time to work when I was at home. Since then, I have spent about four hours each afternoon when I have been in town."

Aikins began work on the carving on Aug. 8, 1988, and completed carving the final figure two weeks ago. Since then, he has treated the wood with a preservative and a lacquer that is traditionally used to coat violins. He also formed a frame for the carving, which will be recessed into one of the church's walls.

"My home is not the place for this carving," Aikins said. "The whole concept of this piece was for others, not for me. This carving is not really about me, it is Jesus teaching on the mountain side. The inception of it was to help bring people to our Lord, not this church in particular. It is for everyone, so it wouldn't be appropriate to display in my home."

Aikins, 70, was brought to tears several times Monday when speaking of the carving, saying he felt God was calling him to finish the work during the past four years.

"I feel much closer to my God," said Aikins, who has been a Plano resident since 1974 and was married to his wife Sandra at the church 34 years ago. "I listen to him a lot more today than I ever have. Since it will be at the church, I hope others will feel the same way and respond likewise."

The carving features 54 individual figures, which are carved out of 4-inch thick basswood. Aikins said the first step was drawing the outline of the people onto the wood, and then clearing away large amounts of wood to get a rough outline of the subjects. From there, it was countless hours of detail work using progressively finer carving tools to get to the finished project. He said all of the work was done by hand, and no sanding was involved in getting the people to have a smooth finish.

For the complicated, specialized carving, Aikins used many of his 170 or so carving tools, including some which he made by hand when store-bought tools wouldn't allow him to complete a necessary step in the process.

The church's director of communications, Mark Buford, said the church family is eagerly anticipating Sunday's unveiling ceremony.

"I think this is huge for the church," Buford said. "For one thing, I think this will get people to come and look at the carving. ... I think it is incredibly inspirational."

Buford said the church has Sunday morning services at 8:30, 9:45 and 11. The dedication, which Buford described as very informal, will take place at about 12:15 p.m. and feature remarks by both Aikins, as well as Senior Pastor Gary Mueller. Buford said anyone in the community is invited to attend in order to get a closer look at the carving, adding that photographs don't do the piece justice.

Mueller said the piece will serve as another way to relate God's teachings to the people of Plano.

"We read about Jesus' message in scripture, sing about it in hymns and hear about it during sermons, but to see it come to life gives an added dimension to the power Jesus had in his ability to relate to people when he preached," Mueller said. "You sense God's grace and feel Russ' love when you look at the carving."

The First United Methodist Church of Plano is located at 3160 E. Spring Creek Parkway. For information on the church, visit www.firstmethodistplano.org.

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