My first spray paint mural, 2019, a blacksmithing bunny. Part of a group mural on Ash St. Our forged sculptural bike rack, "Local Fruit," installed on North Monroe in 2019.

PRESIDENT, WEBMISTRESS

Mallory Battista

ABOUT MALLORY: I am a visual artist and public sculptor, and I have always been interested in metalwork. I met Steve McGrew in 2013 when he was forging at the interstate fair, and I was thrilled to find out that I could learn blacksmithing! My husband has been the biggest supporter of my learning the craft and he surprised me with my first hammer and a two-day class with Steve for Christmas that year. After that, I attended all of the CFI Hammer-Ins and I feel lucky to have gotten to learn from Steve, David, Bill, and John, and the rest of CFI. I joined the board in 2017 and have worked hard within CFI to create more opportunities to blacksmith and to build more platforms for local blacksmiths to learn from each other. In December 2018, we were awarded a $10,000 grant from Spokane Arts for our proposal for mobile blacksmithing education, and we were able to purchase our trailer and additional equipment for our events. I am very happy that this has enabled CFI to do more demos and workshops and serve more people who are interested in ironwork. While the pandemic presented a lot of challenges to the club, I am excited to have things up and running again, and I look forward to helping CFI continue to grow and serve the blacksmithing community. Personally, I'm still working on piecing together a smithy in my small garage, and most of my blacksmithing is still done at CFI events or at other members' shops, and I am very grateful for both.

Mallory's Website: www.mallorybattista.com

VICE PRESIDENT

Bill Mossman

ABOUT BILL: Bill Mossman is an Army veteran and retired Federal employee. If you have been to a club event you have likely seen or met Bill, as he is passionate about sharing his love of forging and creating with the people around him. Bill has been an instrumental member of CFI for several years, working in the background as well to make sure everything is prepared and ready.

SECRETARY, SCHOLARSHIP CHAIR

Melissa Parker

ABOUT MELISSA: It just took one Hammer In for Melissa to realize the potential of forging for creative projects. As a local arts advocate, she brings her skills and passion to the CFI Board. “It’s fun to see what people make! New ideas and objects always seem to be sprouting up in the blacksmith circles. It’s never a dull moment around these people...” With a background in design and communications, Melissa wants to spread opportunities for learning in the community.

TREASURER

Brittany Miller

ABOUT BRITTANY: I am self described “chronic crafter” but after my first class with Columbia Fire and Iron in 2022 I fell in love with blacksmithing in a way I haven't with any other craft. I found myself jumping at every opportunity that CFI offered to learn and grow and I am slowly working on setting up a small smithy at home. The community of artisans in this club is an incredible resource and I count myself lucky to be learning from such talent over the past two years. I am passionate about forging and welcome the opportunity to work with the club and spark that passion in others.

COMMUNICATIONS CHAIR

Annica Eagle

ABOUT ANNICA: Annica had been aware of metalwork through most of her life (a Renaissance Faire here, a New Zealand-filmed, Tolkien-based fantasy trilogy there), but she first dipped her toes into the form when she heard about the intro workshops that Columbia Fire & Iron was putting on during the summer of 2022. Even the 98-degree workshop day couldn’t put her off! Ever since then, she’s been hooked (by an S hook, of course). She is excited to grow more as a blacksmith and to help forge new friendships and connect folks to resources through CFI.

Annica is a comedian and community advocate. When she’s not blacksmithing with CFI, she is performing or teaching improv at The Blue Door Theatre, punning competitively on the world stage (or running the local Punderground event), or helping build a more welcoming and inclusive community here in Spokane.

David Corn

ABOUT DAVID: "After cooking for most of my life, at home and professionally, I stumbled into the idea that I could make my own chef’s knives. In 2013 after some research I jumped down that rabbit hole head first and have not come up for air yet. The last nine years have been spent exploring, trying, and experimenting with every technique I could find or think of. In 2019 my friend Steve McGrew introduced me to teaching which turned out to be an incredible experience and very inspiring. Starting people on the path of bladesmithing and keeping our now thriving art growing has become very important to me."

Chris Kerney

ABOUT CHRIS: “For as far back as I can remember I have been driven to create art. I have never been able to settle with just one craft so I’ve accumulated a lot of skills and often shift gears at the drop of a hat. That being said there has always been one constant, the tools and hardware that are used for most crafts can be and have historically been smithed. For years I did things the hard way, making tools parts and even art using a wood stove or a torch, working at low temperature and only making one or two things for a project and not really thinking about it as blacksmithing. Eventually I bought a propane forge and planned on making all new woodworking hand tools. Working with real heat and seeing the potential of having a real smithy set up I was absolutely hooked and found myself out at the forge every day with new ideas and a new passion for the craft of blacksmithing that exceeded all other crafts I had done. At this point, I am a jack of many trades on my way to being a master of one. Blacksmithing to me is the most rewarding and historically relevant trade there is and I kick myself everyday for not taking it serious 20+ years ago. I absolutely love teaching what I have learned to anyone who will listen and hope to leave an impression on the future generations of blacksmiths to come.”

Zach Robins

ABOUT ZACH: “As cliché as it sounds I stumbled on blacksmithing/blade smithing through a TV show I’m sure you have all seen. My life journey has led me to far off lands where many of my Brothers never returned home to see their families again. This left me with a great sense of loss and anger. Like others in our blacksmithing community I have dabbled in many “hobbies” looking for something but not sure what it was. I found that something in bladesmithing. There is something symbolic in taking a chunk of metal and under great heat and pressure making it into something not only useful but pleasing to the eye. I have found peace within the hammers blow. Now I do my best to share the peace, knowledge and joy I have found in the world of blacksmithing with others.”

Morgan-Jade holding her first piece of metal work.

David Kailey

ABOUT DAVID: As a kid 8-9 I met a Blacksmith Named Vern who owned "the Village Blacksmith" shop in Fallbrook, Ca. I use to spend time watching them forge these fantastic components, on massive power hammers and dropping tools in mid stroke with precision timing. They use to "let me" chip all the welding slag off the pieces they produced. lol. Flash forward 2011 I spent the winter months playing around with cut and weld metal art in my shop with my good friend Jess Chaney work was slow and that got us out of the house. I was 34 and tired of having such a long "bucket list" and decided I should make it happen one of the things on my list was blacksmithing. I sent out several email to smiths I could find within 250 miles and asked if I could apprentice, I got a single response from Steve McGrew of Incandescent Ironworks. He said he taught classes so I saved up $320 bucks and took a 2 day class in January of 2012. I was so excited I could sleep that night..... At 5am I was dressed and ready to go to my class......the one that started at 8am, I left at around 7ish for the 12 min drive and sat in my truck on the road close to Steve's house for 20 min and after a neighbor came and asked what I was doing I finally just drove in 20min early and parked. I smithed with Steve and another student. I was unbelievable. It took me about 8 months to save up for a 240lb Rhino anvil..... but I got some forging done on a hunk of RR track and a hole in the ground, pipe and my wife's hair dryer. In September 2012 my youngest daughter passed away for unknown reasons she was 6. I did several yard art pieces with my wife, Gina and both our daughters Madelynn and Morgan-Jade. I spent several months very depressed and hardly able to function. I was told many time I need to get out and get busy with something, anything... My wife made me promise I would at least go to the shop. I didn't have to do anything I just had to drive there and unlock the door. After day 4 I actually went in the shop about, 8:30am and after an hour or so I put on some music...having two daughters my taste in music had softened a lot so I listened to acoustic, soft rock, adult contemporary...... you know that touchy feely music. So there I was forging steel, listening to Adel and I started to cry. I just kept forging as my tears hit the anvil and the hot steel. Picturing myself, 6'3" 250lb stock mans man... forging steel, listening to Adel and crying, It made me think about what the look on Morgan-Jade's face would be, if she were to walk in at that moment. I started laughing. So I kept forging, I cried, laughed, pondered, meditated on encouraging bible texts, thought about the love showed by my friends, and how blessed I was to have Gina, Madelynn and Morgan-Jade, thanked Jehovah god for the hope of the resurrection. I don't even have any memory of what I actually forged that day, about 6pm I got a call from my wife seeing if i was ok..... and I was. I was ok. So forging became very therapeutic for me, it was an outlet for my emotions, allowed time for me to ponder, to remember the good in my life, my family, my god, and I was just what I was..... if i felt like crying i did, if I felt like laughing, i was happy to be feeling again.....  I started selling some of my work and it got to the point were it started adding up to several thousands of dollars so I figured I should start a side business and report the income. At Breakfast one morning I asked my daughter Madelynn what we should name the company.......she said we should name it after Morgan-Jade, she'd have liked that. So for 3 years I forged, I never allowed myself to be embarrassed or hide how I was feeling, I listen to music I feel like at that moment...ect. This is who I am battered, scarred, loved, alive, hurt, faithful, and I am good with that. Every dime I made smithing, and some I made from my job went right into buying the next piece of equipment I needed to further my addiction. In February 2016 I moved into a small 30x30 shop and started blacksmithing full time. I have had to sacrifice a lot of things, boat, collector guns, archery bows..... etc, and Gina and Mady have cut some things out also so I can do this. How great it is to be able to go to my smithy....Morgan-Jade Ironworks & Forge... open the door and go to work.

David's Website: www.morganjadeironworks.com

John Huffstutter

ABOUT JOHN: John Huffstutter's Quailside Forge in eastern Washington grew from his passion for making "stuff." A change of careers gave him the opportunity to turn an eclectic collection of interests and hobbies into a focused avocation. He has now been blacksmithing for more than twelve years, with a focus on traditional styles and methods. He blends smithing with woodworking and his other hobbies to produce attractive and functional items. Blacksmithing is physical, mental, creative and fun. “It’s rewarding to use a two hundred pound anvil, a three pound hammer and fire to make metal shape to your will.”

Email John at: quailsideforge (at) gmail (dot) com

Steve McGrew - In Memoriam

ABOUT STEVE: Steve began blacksmithing in 2004, was a founding member and President of Columbia Fire & Iron, and served on the Board of Directors of the Northwest Blacksmith Association. He taught more than 350 students blacksmithing and knife making between 2008 and 2020. He published approximately 25 how-to articles in blacksmithing trade journals and websites including two ABANA journals and the NWBA journal.  His Rhino anvil design is popular across North America and continues to be cast locally. He did public demonstrations of blackmithing at the Spokane Interstate Fair and other venues annually from 2009 through 2019. His dandelion sculpture commemorating young victims of the great Sichuan earthquake has been on display at the Earthquake Museum in Chengdu, China since 2009. He taught a one-week blacksmithing workshop for art students in Dujiangyan, then Chengdu, every Spring from 2009 through 2016. In his “other life,” he owned and managed a small high-tech business, from which he retired in August 2017. While Steve considered himself a blacksmith hobbyist, he taught and inspired countless smiths throughout his career and he donated his smithy to Gizmo in Coeur d'Alene, ID and his extensive blacksmithing library to CFI before he passed away in 2021, leaving a legacy of support for the regional blacksmithing community.

Ron Weston - In Memoriam

ABOUT RON: Ron was an excellent metal artist, a magician in the machine shop, full of fun, enthusiasm, and creativity. He and his wife Trudy hosted CFI's first two hammer-ins. Ron taught high school shop for many years, then served as a firefighter in Spokane for 14 years. He retired in 2013 to concentrate on family, hobbies, and adventure, and passed away in 2018.

More about Ron: read blog post