Folk artist and wood sculptor Dave Sipe turned an old, damaged tree in front of the Mancos Performance Center into a symbol of school spirit last week.
K-12 dean of students and athletic director Health Showalter said that due to the risk of falling limbs, the tree was cut, leaving just around 12-feet of the trunk.
“That way instead of having to get rid of the whole tree we could do something fun with it,” he said.
After reaching out to Sipe, Showalter contacted the booster club, which agreed to foot the bill for local artist’s work.
While there are still thoughts of adding a stain or finish to the carving, it’s already drawn attention around town.
“He did a good job,” said Showalter. “I thought it was interesting, and there were a bunch of people that came to look at it and take pictures, so it’s something fun.”