EDMESTON _ If you want a little bit of Edmeston to take home with you, you'll want to be at the town's American Legion hall between 9 and 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 17.
Between those hours, Kay York's miniatures of the former Edmeston Fire House, which once stood on the east side of South Street, will be on sale. York, an artist and craftswoman, produces miniatures of notable Edmeston buildings each year and donates the proceeds to the Edmeston Tea Circle.
This civic group sends birthday and anniversary cards to senior citizens and helps people whose homes have burned or who have faced other challenges.
It also donates funds to community organizations, including the Edmeston Rotary Club for its street banner project, according to Tea Circle member Joyce Hickling.
``We try to help people when they need it, and the miniatures are our biggest fundraiser of the year,'' she said.
The group used to meet in people's homes, but recently, it has been gathering at the bakery at Pathfinder Village, Hickling said.
Hickling, Marge Rowland and Irene Howard are among the members who have helped with this year's miniatures, York said Thursday.
``My husband, Avery, has been a big help, cutting out the wooden blocks,'' she said. ``He's a lot better than I am at figuring out the angles with the saws.''
She starts her projects by studying photographs taken of historic buildings in the early 20th century.
``I get those from Bob Nonenmacher at the Edmeston Museum,'' she said.
Then she draws her version of these buildings, working to catch the essence of each one without necessarily replicating it.
``I fuss with that until I like it,'' she said.
Then she starts building, doing most of the work in a cherry studio in her house on Louis Dickinson Road.
``I like this room because it has a lot of light,'' she said.
She stays in here, sometimes for long stretches, and works through the project by stages. This year, she is working by multiples of 80, attaching masonite roofs, drilling holes, inserting dowels and hanging bells.
For her first projects, York colored each wooden structure individually, but she has streamlined the process now and uses facades made with a color printer.
``I've had to do things differently because we're selling more of them,'' she said.
Last year, she produced 67 models of the old train station; this year, she's making 80 miniatures of the Victorian fire house.
She numbers each piece, and each one bears the seal of the Edmeston Tea Circle.
``I tell her this is folk art,'' Avery York said.
People don't wait until the sale to reserve their miniatures, she said. ``I think we've already sold all but 10 this year.''
To reserve a fire house, which sells for $20, people may call Hickling at 965-8119.
