ABANA Board of Directors Election
Review the candidate statements and cast your vote.
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Voting ends July 15 at midnight Eastern Time.
Cast your vote for up to any five (5) candidates from the pool of seven (7) nominees. In addition, there is a Yes/No vote for an appointed Board member to retain their seat for the rest of the designated term.
All ABANA members have the right to cast a vote. You must sign in to your ABANA account to vote.
If you experience any technical issues while voting, contact Fritz at ABANA Headquarters at (814) 254-4817.
Jack Brubaker
I’ve had the pleasure of being on the ABANA Board for several years and currently serve as Chair of the Publications Committee. Working with our talented editors and seeing The Anvil’s Ring and Hammer’s Blow come together is a real joy to me. The editors bring so much to our community, and I do my best to proof and help focus their work. There is more to do, and I’d like to continue the work.
I became a full-time smith in 1970 and attended the first ABANA Conference in ’74. ABANA was my source of growth and new ideas as I built my business. I co-founded the Indiana Blacksmithing Association, served on the Board of American Craft Enterprises, and was President of ABANA in the mid ’80s. In recent years, I headed up the Blacksmithing program at the American College of the Building Arts. This is a time of change and growth for the future of ABANA. I look forward to being part of that future.
Bud Harvey
I was elected to the Board in 2022 and currently serve as 1st Vice President and Financial Committee Chair, and was the 2024 ABANA Conference Chairman. I am NC Level III Certified, and teach ABANA NC Level 1 and 2 at my shop, and help with online NC Level 1 sessions.
My blacksmithing journey began with Uri Hofi at Ozark School of Blacksmithing in 1997 and continued with other master smiths, including Mark Aspery. I have Metallurgical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering BS degrees. I worked for 37 years in engineering design, materials technology, purchasing, quality and upper management at Caterpillar, Inc., retiring in 2002. I’m past president of Illinois Valley Blacksmithing Association and maintain membership in two other ABANA affiliates. My business, Hot Iron Blacksmith, is a fully equipped blacksmith shop, and nine permanent student coal forge stations serving Central Illinois. My primary purpose is to repay my knowledge, experience and enthusiasm for blacksmithing.
John McLellan
I got started in blacksmithing at the age of eight, when I inherited a forge and anvil from my grandfather. The high school I attended offered a course in horseshoeing which I took my junior and senior years. I joined ABANA in 1980 for the Santa Cruz Conference. That was my first chance to meet smiths from around the country, and the world. It opened my eyes to the possibilities.
As a board member from 2009 thru 2015, I helped initiate the Education Curriculum with Mark Aspery. The board at that time didn’t want to take it up. More recent boards decided to promote it, and it has become a very valuable part of ABANA. I accepted another term in 2022 to help with the conference in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. I’m currently running for the board to continue promoting the education program and help with the upcoming conference in Arkansas.
Beatrice Perret
Beatrice Perret first became involved with blacksmithing through the Arizona Blacksmith Association and the California Blacksmith Association. She is a Level I & II National Curriculum instructor and is currently working on her Level III certification.
Beatrice has traveled extensively and learned about blacksmith practices in different countries. Being fluent in English and French she plans to expand the international relationships that ABANA has started to build. She is putting together an all—women’s team to compete in Stia (Italy) this year, as well as an all-women’s team to make a sculpture on-site over the three-day event.
With her background in science, she would like to explore connections with the Metal industry and expansions of the curriculum to adapt to requirements from the workplace. Plus, she is happy to get involved in other areas where ABANA has needs.
Mark Sperry
This summer marks my forty-year anniversary of being involved in blacksmithing both as a hobby and professionally. I spent the last 27 years working in Colonial Williamsburg’s blacksmith shop doing historical reproductions. I’m currently running for a second term on the ABANA board, and I need your support so I can finish the projects we are currently working on. My first term on the board has been mostly working with the Education Committee to promote the skills of smiths. I have also been involved with the Planning Committee for the previous and upcoming conference. Thanks for your support.
Adlai Stein
I operate the Central Ohio School of Metalwork, in Columbus, OH. Thomas Powers put hot steel in my hands for the first time, and I’ve been hoooked ever since. Classes from the Small Business Development Center helped me turn my hobby into a business, and I started working out of the local makerspace, where I discovered a passion for teaching and community. Talking to smiths who are fantastic artists but have no idea how to sell their work made me realize the importance of marketing.
My partner, Bekah Mollette, and I forge during the day and teach classes from our own space. We believe anyone who wants to learn should have an opportunity to forge. This has brought in special needs students from a local day program, some of whom are in wheel chairs and are nonverbal. Blacksmithing with these folks reinforces that this is what I was meant to do.
James Thurau
I have always enjoyed teaching. At my sportsmen’s club I have been teaching the Hunter Education course for thirty years. I have been an electronics instructor at a technical school and have taught “HAM” amateur radio classes. I have been both a Sunday school teacher and a Bible study leader. While my son was in the scouts I taught the Welding and the Blacksmithing merit badges. I am currently demonstrating Blacksmithing at the Drake Well Museum as a member of the Oil Valley Blacksmiths Association. At the forge I demonstrate for tours. Another opportunity to demonstrate Blacksmithing is at the nearby ghost town of Pithole. An oil boom town which was abandoned when the oil was gone. Last summer at Touchstone Center for Crafts I took two different blacksmithing classes. This year I am already enrolled in another blacksmithing class themed on the ABANA curriculum. I will promote blacksmithing education.
Andy Quittner
Andy Quittner has been an attorney for over 30 years, recently retiring as the city attorney for Seguin, Texas. He received a bachelor’s in science from Louisiana State University in Shreveport and an M.A. in Chemistry from the University of Texas. He received a law degree from the University of Texas, all while continuing graduate studies in chemistry. An undying interest in blacksmithing was sparked while working as a farrier in Louisiana, particularly at the New Orleans Fairgrounds, while working towards membership in the Journeyman Horseshoers Union. At the Fairgrounds blacksmith shop, making tools was part of the learning process shared by some of the “old-timers.” He considers himself an avid amateur with a strong interest in self-improvement. As someone who believes in doing more than just joining an organization, he served on the ABANA board of directors for most of the 1990s and recently stepped up to fill a vacant spot on the Board.