Waxhaw News - The Official Community Publication - Waxhaw, NC Waxhaw News Sept_Oct 2017 | Page 17

By: Bonnie Rusinko
It gives me
great pleasure
to introduce a
master wood-
carver, William
(Bill) Moloney,
who is well
known for his
award-winning
carved bird
creations. One
of his fascinat-
ing creations is
a duck/goose
in flight carved
from a single
piece of wood;
no glue or breaks not even with their intricate
fragile wing span, achieved only from a special
tree from Vermont. Bill’s sought-after carvings
are so realistic with such life-like features, you
feel at any moment they will breathe. His ma-
jestic ability and special attention to detail has
earned him numerous prestigious awards and
honors throughout the United States. The list
contains many to include the U.S.A. National
Carving Competition, 1990 Long Island Wild-
fowl Carver of the Year, Charlotte Woodcarvers
Club’s World Carving Competition, but the one
closest to his heart is the coveted 2015 World
Championship Wildfowl Carving Competition.
Bill was born and raised in Long Island, New
York and is the youngest of four sons, who, like
Bill are artists (photographer and woodcarvers).
When I asked Bill who or what inspired him to
pursue such a unique form of art, he quickly
stated with pride, his father. Although a ma-
chinist and masonry by trade with a successful
contracting business, his father’s passion was
working with wood, especially carving birds.
Bill and his brothers would spend endless hours
watching his father and uncle carve art pieces
from wood. Bill was fascinated and knew at the
young age of 10 that he was hooked and wanted
to learn all he could about woodcarving, so with
the support of his father, he joined a wood-
carving club. Bill never tired of learning and
absorbed this creative art like a sponge, howev-
er, like most artists he pushed this new-found
passion to the proverbial back burner to focus
on education, career and family.
After high school graduation Bill attended tech
school to become a machinist like his father
and also became a successful mason while
working for a construction company. Bill said
he loves being outside and working with his
hands. When Bill was drafted into the Army
and received
orders for
Germany,
he mar-
ried his
high school
sweetheart,
Dorothy,
and together
spent two
years in
beautiful
Munich,
Germa-
ny. They
returned
home with
their first
child, Billy
Jr. to settle
down and
raise a fam-
ily in their
beloved
Long Island.
Bill and
Dorothy have five children, Billy Jr, Thomas,
Paul, Jane and Jill and all are artists. As his fam-
ily grew, so did his desire to once again carve
and create from a hunk of wood, so once again
he picked up his carving tools and his creative
25 year journey as a woodcarver began.
Bill attended the well-known Alpine School
of Wood Carving in Chicago, attended work-
shops and even learned the European art of
Chip Carving from artist and master, Wayne
Barton. (A technique using two knives to form
Scandinavian Designs carved into wood). He
also founded and was president of the Suffolk
County Woodcarver’s Guild. Bill and Dorothy
were very active in their community and slow-
ly became a piece of the fabric of Long Island
and never once considered leaving; however,
eight years ago Bill and Dorothy came to Wax-
haw to help their son, Paul, after the death of
his wife. To their amazement and that of their
friends and family, they decided to stay. Bill
wasted no time joining the local Wood Carvers
Club to share his talent and expertise, both as a
woodcarver and a mason, when helping his son
with local masonry jobs, such as the magnifi-
cent expansion of the Military Wall of Honor in
Waxhaw.
It was an honor and privilege to interview such
a patriotic, g entle soul as William (Bill) Moloney
and look forward to seeing his next creation at
the Annual Charlotte’s Showcase of Carving in
February.
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