All Abuzz - Bookmarks festival and head-shaving fundraiser bring thousands downtown

Roy Underhill used his foot to spin a wooden turntable just before starting the woodworking demonstration he was doing on Trade Street as part of yesterday's Bookmarks festival.

Neatly displayed on the turntable were copies of his latest book, The Woodwright's Guide: Working Wood with Wedge and Edge.

Underhill, known for his PBS program, The Woodwright's Shop, joked that that was his way of getting people to feel hypnotized into buying his book.

For a good part of his presentation, he talked about the history of woodworking in America as he showed a crowd of about 50 people various examples of dovetails, which are woodworking joints.

"We have sap in our blood," he said.

Underhill was part of a lineup of 40 authors at the 2009 Bookmarks festival of books that included a Pulitzer Prize winner. The festival was moved to downtown Winston-Salem on and around Trade and Sixth streets this year after being held for the past several years at Historic Bethabara Park.

Debbie Harllee, the president and acting director of Bookmarks, said that the move downtown helped save money that would have been spent on leasing tents, chairs, sound equipment and a shuttle bus.

She also said that there was good collaboration between the festival's organizers and downtown merchants.

Participants gave mixed comments about the festival.

A.J. Emmett of Winston-Salem and his nephews Aubrey, 9, and Levi, 7, were excited to shave wood on Underhill's woodworking equipment, including a foot-powered lathe to round wood and make fancy curves.

"I think it's more interesting that they get to experience some traditional-style building techniques that you don't see very often," Emmett said of his nephews.

Many people said they liked having Bookmarks downtown because it offered them different venues, including restaurants and shops.

While watching a demonstration by Christiane Jory on how to make gourmet recipes at discount prices, Carolyn Zifchak of Clemmons said she typically doesn't venture downtown. But she came yesterday because of Bookmarks and plans to return.

"I'm enjoying downtown, and I think this is a great thing for Winston-Salem," she said.

Larry Rice of Winston-Salem said that the festival was well worth his time.

"I got free books from Edward McKay and a great financial seminar with Glinda Bridgforth," he said.

But some who attended the festival said that it lacked big-name authors and that some authors didn't stick around after their presentations.

Deborah Streeter of Winston-Salem, said she wished that there had been more well-known authors at the festival because she is part of a poetry group and wanted an opportunity to network.

She also had hoped to find more books for children.

"I just expected more," Streeter said.

Organizers said they were pleased with the turnout and hope to have Bookmarks in downtown Winston-Salem next year. They are waiting on an official count but estimated an attendance of 7,000 at this year's festival, about the same as last year.

Harllee said that many of the people she talked to said they liked the variety of authors, from a wide-range of literary genres, featured at the festival. Some told her that this year's lineup was the "best ever."

"It's always changing every year because you get different authors and different authors are on tour," Harllee said.

She said that some people may not have been aware that the authors were available for an hour at a book-signing area after their presentations.

Harllee said she welcomes feedback from participants to help plan for next year.

"There are just things you have to learn," she said about moving the festival downtown. "It's like any thing you do the first time."

As Bookmarks was winding down, Finnigan's Wake restaurant on Trade Street got its third annual St. Baldrick's Day under way at 3 p.m.

It was a host site for the St. Baldrick's Foundation fundraiser.

Five barbers took turns shaving heads in front of the restaurant to raise money for childhood-cancer research.

Lea Thullbery, the coordinator for the head-shaving fundraiser, said that Finnigan's raised about $30,000, compared with $26,500 last year.

Family and friends of 4-year-old Lindsay Templeton raised about $6,000 for the St. Baldrick's fundraiser for a special reason.

Lindsay, who lives in Statesville, was diagnosed with acute monocytic leukemia a year ago but has been in remission for six months.

"If Lindsay had been diagnosed 30 years ago, she would have had about a 4 percent chance of making it, and now she has about a 50 percent chance," Ginger Templeton, her mother, said. "It's obviously much better all because of the research that's happened in the last 30 years, and we just want to see that 50 percent go to 100 percent."

■ Fran Daniel can be reached at 727-7366 or at fdaniel@wsjournal.com