• Allison Miles •
• Originally published July 8, 2008 at 11:29 p.m., updated July 8, 2008 at 11:29 p.m.

Don Yates donned rubber gloves Tuesday morning as he transported bundles of wooden spindles to the McNamara House Museum.

The spindles – all 240 of them – are a labor of love for Yates, who handcrafted them to replace those missing from the museum’s balustrades on the porch.

It’s part of the museum’s renovation, director Denise Roussel said, which has gone on for several years and has cost an estimated $140,000.

That money has gone toward new paint, a refurbished porch and carpentry, she said, and about $75,000 in repairs remain.

Yates cut the spindles for free and got to work after the museum provided him with the Honduran mahogany wood.

It was his first time working with wood, he said, noting he developed a severe allergy to it about halfway through the project.

But with help from long-sleeved shirts, rubber gloves and duct tape to connect the two, he continued.

He got better with practice, Yates’ wife Rebecca said, noting he started out making about four spindles a day but worked his way up to 10 on some days.

“The neighbors had all been watching him,” she said, smiling toward her husband of nearly 52 years. “They kept asking how many he got done.”

Rebecca wasn’t surprised at her husband’s willingness to help.

Their daughter, Teresa Giles, works at the museum and Rebecca said Don’s “greatest delight in life is helping his kids.”

The spindles aren’t in place yet, though.

It will take about a month to restore the balustrades, said Jim Wearden, the Victoria Regional Museum Association’s board president.

And that will be no easy task, Roussel said, noting it requires raising the entire house up to complete the job.

Don said he’s happy with the way the wood project turned out, but said his happiness isn’t the important thing.

“As long as they’re pleased,” he said, “that’s the main thing.

Allison Miles is a reporter for the Advocate. Contact her at 361-580-6511 or amiles@vicad.com, or comment on this story at www.VictoriaAdvocate.com.

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