The Ox from Ben Proudfoot on Vimeo.
Either I wear my heart on my sleeve or the production team that put this video together did one hell of a good job. Eric Hollenbeck is a 66 year-old Vietnam veteran and owner/operator of Blue Ox Millworks This 10-minute documentary, brilliantly produced by Ben Proudfoot and Breakwater Studios is jaw-dropping in its beauty, musical score, and story. If you watch only one woodworking-related documentary for the next year, make it this one. It might be short, but it is most definitely sweet.
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Comments
Ed Pirnik,
Thank you for sharing. The life the OX has lived is shared by many of us.
What a great accomplishment he has created and now sharing that with others like him. Helping young people get started.
You are right. This is the one to watch. I didn't want it to end.
"JUST WOW".
Eric and this video captures well the joy of woodworking, the spirit of America and tells a powerful story. Congrats to Eric, the producers and staff. Thank you for your service.
A definite must watch.
You have a great story Eric! Thank you for your service and for being a hero to young people and veterans alike.
Man..... what a great story!!!
Wow, Just Wow, what an inspiration.
If you ever get a chance Blue Ox is a place you have to visit . Eric is as real in person as on the film. He is a community asset more places need.
Good to know it is ok to be quirky. Our springs do not need to be bent back, everyone else just needs their springs to be bent.
What a great story. Eric shows true wisdom, and wisdom from the school of hard knocks is the best kind.
Thank you for sharing this video.
Ed, thank you so much for posting this link; Eric is such a powerful inspiration.
A wonderful reminder as to what real people are all about. Yes, those people who shower after a days work...they're the the ones who put the great into this world.
An inspiration, a true man and powerful spirit.....
reincarnation...? Not for Eric, his work here is done, he will be moving on to a higher level...where the good folk go...!! Thanks Eric
Eduardito-
Great find, left me with wanting to see more.
Thanks
Il est toujours surprenant et agréable à la fois de recevoir des leçons de vie de la part de gens simples, bien connectés à la réalité. Ce documentaire est touchant et tout à l'honneur de cet homme imposant qui sait bien partager sa sagesse et son empathie envers les autres. Un modèle à suivre...
Michel Parent,
Laval, Québec, Canada
Welcome Home, Brother
finding this was worth the price of admission...
The Marine Corps sent me to Vietnam in 1966, and I never really ever left. I sat here first dumbfounded, and then with tears in my eyes, as I listened to The OX explain that 'my mainspring was bent'. To many, this is a wonderful doc about a man and his wood shop. For me, a 48-yr-old opaque lens was partially pushed aside from my soul. I just don't know how else to put it, or what else to say...
humbled, truly humbled.
Thank you, FWW, for continuing to post well documented videos to your site! It's wonderful to find inspiration in something we value like woodworking.
Eric is a national treasure. He never misses an opportunity to pay it forward in terms of craftsmanship and the magic of making things. He helped and inspired me when I came to Eureka, CA to work on a green remodeling guide for historic houses in northern California. Thanks to all who had a hand in producing and spreading the work about Blue Ox Millworks.
This is Eric Hollenbeck and I want to thank you all for your heart felt comments. I read them all and feel humbled for myself yet proud of Blue Ox at the same time. I am very happy to tell you all that the school to veterans is now a reality, and our first project is the making of all the trim , windows, doors, turnings and fret work for a reproduction Hearse that carried Abraham Lincoln in 1865. It will be the center piece for the week long celebration of the 150 year anniversary in Springfield Ill. next March. The best to all of you. Eric
Just fantastic. As an artist (writer, painter, musician, woodworker, model builder, mechanic, and upholsterer) this film rang so true for me that it actually brought a tear to my eye. If you have ever made anything with just your mind and your two hands, you really have to see this film.
Absolutely awesome documentary... True Inspiration
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