ECHO National Chainsaw Carving Team to Take Center Stage at AFRH-Washington 'In Honor of All Service Men and Women Around the World'

WASHINGTON, April 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The Armed Forces Retirement Home - Washington (AFRH-W) will host a patriotic chain saw carving challenge on May 14-16, 2010.  This widely anticipated event is co-hosted by ECHO Outdoor Power Equipment who is sending three members of its renowned National Carving Team to participate during this three-day event.

It will be a memorable outdoor event featuring Mark Colp (Lakeport, CA), Mike Bihlmaier (Marengo, IL) and Jason Emmons (St. Croix, IN), three of the top chainsaw carvers in the United States.  "This is a great way to celebrate Armed Forces week on the historic grounds of the Washington, DC campus," said David Watkins, AFRH-W Director. "And, it is a perfect opportunity to bring the active duty, military organization and our distinguished residents together and honor their service."

Justin Seffens, Chief, Campus Operations said, "This is a first time an event of this type has been held at AFRH-W. It is an honor and privilege to host the ECHO Carving Team who will be making history of their own through a skillful craft with a patriotic flare."

About ECHO Carving Team

The ECHO Carving Team will be competing against each other for the "People's Choice" category, while developing sculptures which will be placed on permanent display on AFRH-W grounds. All three are full time, professional carvers who make their livelihoods from chain saw sculpting. They are both commission artists and competition carvers, contracted by ECHO to serve as ambassadors for the brand and to showcase their art.  

So what's a competition carver? A chain saw artist could work on a commissioned piece for months in his studio.  The challenge of a high level competition is to carve extremely well against the clock, while bringing out a personal interpretation of a pre-chosen theme. ECHO has dubbed this type of chain saw carving "Full Throttle Art."  The sculpture themes the ECHO Carving Team will carve on AFRH-W grounds will be pre-chosen by residents, who will then vote for their favorite sculpture. You can read more about the carving team at www.echo-usa.com/carvingteam.

ABOUT AFRH-WASHINGTON

For more than a century and a half, veteran airmen, Marines, sailors and soldiers have enjoyed the finest lifestyles in their retirement. The tradition continues with both the Gulfport and Washington campuses of the Armed Forces Retirement Home, model retirement centers with facilities and services designed with our residents in mind.  The Home retirement community houses 900+ residents with four levels of care (Independent Living, Assisted Living, Memory Support and Long Term Care).

About ECHO Outdoor power equipment

For the past 30 years, ECHO has been a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of professional-grade hand-held outdoor power equipment. Producing hand-held landscaping equipment for both the commercial and residential homeowner markets, ECHO prides itself on setting the industry standard with its dedication to new technology, quality products and its strong distribution infrastructure. For additional information please visit www.echo-usa.com

Media opportunities on the following dates:  Friday, May 14th – 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon and Sunday, May 16th-9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Location: AFRH-W, 3700 N. Capitol Street, NW, Washington, DC  20011.

For more information about the AFRH and its mission to fulfill our nation's commitment to its veterans, please visit www.afrh.gov.

SOURCE Echo, Inc.