Volunteer Leonard Marty and furnace project leader Mark Gibeau (in cap) lay the final insulating fire bricks on the rear of the new furnace structure

Hot Glass Furnace Completed Students and faculty at Pilchuck this summer are enjoying the use of the school's new hot glass furnace. Due to the corrosive nature of molten glass, glass furnaces have a limited life-span, and last fall, it was clear that the school's old furnace had reached the end of that span. A special appeal at Pilchuck's 1999 Glass Auction prompted more than 120 patrons to raise their paddles in support of a new glass furnace. The effort generated over $65,000, making the construction of a new, computer-regulated furnace a possibility. Under the leadership of Mark Gibeau, a furnace construction expert and faculty member at Alberta College of Art, a team of two paid staff and eight volunteers spent four weeks at Pilchuck this spring, constructing both the new hot glass furnace and a smaller "pot" furnace which will be used for melting colored glass.

Many thanks to all of the supporters who contributed to Pilchuck's Hot Glass Furnace Fund.

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