WELCOME
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Welcome friends , customers , employees , and suppliers , and thank you for picking up this Fall 2021 issue of West Head Boatbuilders – The Magazine . In this issue , we ’ re excited to spotlight a few familiar faces in our community and let you in on what ’ s been happening at West Head in the last six months .
As you may know , we recently completed the construction of our new shop at 69 Boundary Street . Right now , we ’ re in the process of hiring for the new location , so if you or someone you know is a skilled boatbuilder and would be interested in joining our team , please send a resume to myself at lobster1 @ eastlink . ca . Specifically , we are looking for experienced fiberglassers .
Once staffed , the new shop will focus on the production of enlarged SeaDuck and Grizzly hulls , which are continuing to gain popularity with our local fishermen . Our Fall 2021 Customer Spotlight features one of those larger and more sophisticated builds : a 39-foot , 14.99 ton SeaDuck , the Ocean Eden , built for local lobster fisherman Felton Atkinson and affectionately named after his two young granddaughters . The trend toward larger hulls has been a welcome challenge for our team , and we look forward to accommodating more of these builds with the addition of the new shop .
A majority of West Head boats have been hand painted by renowned local artist , John “ SignSmith .” John has been a famous painter in our community since before many of us were born , and we are lucky to have this legend put the finishing touches on some of our finest marine spectacles . You can read his story and learn about his process in “ John ‘ SignSmith ’: The Artist Behind Some of West Head ’ s Marine Masterpieces .”
In the fall 2021 Employee Spotlight , we introduce you to one of the talented fiberglassers we have glassing each build , Danielle Hopkins . Danielle joined West Head this year and has made meticulous work of ensuring every hull , deck , liner , and other
fiberglass component is moulded to perfection . Her tenacious attitude and careful attention to detail are immense assets to West Head and help us to uphold the high standard for quality we pride ourselves on .
Also featured in this issue is Boat Building Legacy and father of West Head ’ s very own Deborah Knowles , Bruce Atkinson . Bruce has been a keystone in the boatbuilding community , and it ’ s an honour to share his story , innovations , and great contributions to the local industry in “ Bruce Atkinson : A Boat Building Legacy .”
Towards the end of the magazine , we have some sneak peeks into builds we ’ ll be working on over the next six months . We ’ re excited to share these finished products and their stories in the spring 2022 issue of West Head Boatbuilders – The Magazine .
On behalf of all of us here at West Head , I ’ d like to wish everyone a safe and prosperous lobstering season this year , and we hope to see you all very soon at the shop .
Andrew Newell , Owner West Head Boatbuilders Ltd .
WESTHEADBOATBUILDERS . CA
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