DANIEL TYLER GOODEN

God-given talent comes in many forms. In Harry Zeringue it shines through his hands. Entering Harry and Rita Zeringue’s house one would assume they are collectors of wood art. Animals frozen in various poses stand watchful on shelves, in glass display cases and on tables. Wood ducks, fish, horses, hummingbirds, crawfish, roses and a multitude of other animals fill the house. Each piece is a work of art, and each piece was carved from a plain block of wood by Harry Zeringue. “There is nothing this man can’t carve,” said Rita Zeringue. Ever since he was little, Zeringue had a way with a knife. His first carvings were monkeys, shaved from peach pits. Though it was always an ability he had, Zeringue didn’t fully develop his talent until a year before his retirement from Kaiser Aluminum in 1988. Before retirement Zeringue devoted his time to his family and his work. Harry knew Rita long before they were married but had joined the Army and served for almost four years. In the service Zeringue had the honor of serving in Gen. Eisenhower’s guard. In Germany he watched over the general as he fished out of a swimming pool stocked with fish, said Zeringue. When he returned he married Rita, and they have been together now for 54 years. His carving talent arose periodically throughout his life, first in the peach pits and later in other pieces. “One day he came in and said, I’m going to carve Frank (Tramonte) fishing,” said Rita Zeringue. He went to work and finished with his friend hooking the back of his own pants. Zeringue continued to create, not always with carvings, but some times in carpentry. His father was a carpenter, and Zeringue in turn designed and built homes. He also put his hand to building boats. Before he retired from Kaiser, Zeringue turned full time to carving. “I got the love of carving,” said Zeringue. In his most productive days he would carve as many as a wood duck a month. a whole slew of animals sprung from his workshop out behind the house. His children and grandchildren all received pieces of his work. All the girls got horses and roses. One granddaughter got a Bert and Ernie carving, which she carried to college and everywhere she went, said Rita Zeringue. For 13 years Zeringue has been seriously carving. He’s is a member of Pelican Wood Carvers of Baton Rouge. With the club he traveled to some of the bigger shows in New Orleans. “He always did good at the shows. He’s got hundreds of ribbons,” said Rita Zeringue. “Ribbons beaucoup,” confirmed Zeringue with a smile. One bookshelf is dedicated to his blue ribbon pieces, life-size wood ducks being the stars of the display. His drive toward carving came after a trip to Branson, Mo. There Zeringue saw all sorts of carvings and picked up a book on patterns. Many of his pieces are based on patterns, though the more experience he gained, the more he relied on his own vision to created his pieces. Zeringue’s carving was set back in the last year as Parkinson’s disease set into his left hand. His son, Sonny Zeringue, set up a set of vices in his father’s workshop allowing him to continue with his work. Though the saws made Rita nervous, she learned how to operate the equipment to help him as well. Now Zeringue continues carving with one hand, still creating intricate pieces of art. When Zeringue is not spending time in the workshop he and Rita are spending time all over the world. They’ve traveled to Australia, Italy, Sweden, New Zealand and many other countries. “I always wanted to go to Paris, ever since I was a little girl. I went but fell in love with Italy,” said Rita Zeringue. In April the couple is headed to Hawaii. “Harry say’s he’ll go where I go,” she added with a smile. Zeringue isn’t a man of many words. Talking about his work, mostly he’ll let his wife fill in the details while he smiles at the sound of her voice. Though his tongue doesn’t ramble the man has much to say. His hands have done his talking, expressing himself more than any words could do. His pieces not only adorn the Zeringue home, but the homes of his four children, 15 grandchildren and numerous friends. The pieces serve as a piece of Zeringue himself, as a reminder of a soft-spoken, big-hearted man.