Borderland residents soon will be able to purchase a one-of-a-kind afghan that depicts the roots of the logging industry here and its visionary–lumber baron E.W. Backus.
Entitled “Borderland,” the woven afghan was spearheaded by Carol Elizabeth Pirie, Backus’ great-granddaughter. A resident of Hendersonville, N.C., she was inspired to the idea after attending the unveiling of the E.W. Backus mural by Brian Romagnoli here in November.
She arrived Saturday with the finished product and presented it as a gift to the local Business Improvement Area for treating her and her family so well during her visit to Fort Frances last fall.
“When I got back home and was looking at all the old photos Julian Morelli and Sam Woods [of Ranier, Mn.] had given me, I just knew this was what I was going to do,” Pirie enthused Tuesday.
Three artists designed the afghan using the photos she supplied.
Morelli hopes to have a supply of the afghans (available in a variety of colours) on hand by late next week and wants the BIA to retail them through local businesses.
Proceeds from sales will flow back into the BIA for local projects.
The afghans also will be available at retailers in International Falls.
“I was absolutely stunned–just like everybody else who has seen it,” Morelli said yesterday afternoon. “This is a case of somebody from somewhere else coming up with an idea that kind be used throughout the whole of Borderland.”
“It is fantastic, it really is,” echoed BIA chairman Dan Cousineau. “And it’s the kind of [product] that will work on both sides of the border.”
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
