Orlando veteran gives carved ‘care birds’ to sick children

Carved out of light basswood and smoothly sanded, Joe Evans creates sparrowlike figurines shaped to nest in the hollow of his hand.

Evans, a disabled veteran from Orlando, has clutched one of the wooden “care birds” during some of his most painful moments. One even accompanied Evans to Boston in 2014 for surgery to repair his trachea. It rested by his bedside through the recovery and was there for him to grip when the pain hit.

Somehow, he says, squeezing the care bird provided relief and comfort in distress.

“There’s something about a bird that talks about freedom and the ability to go wherever you want to go without any boundaries,” Evans said.

Now, the 63-year-old woodcarver is hoping to offer this gift of comfort to children coping with illness and pain. A band of local carvers has rallied around the idea, and last week, they presented their first 21 birds to Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando.

A Nemours spokesman said donations like these can make a big difference for young patients.

“Over and over people all across Central Florida have shown Nemours’ patients and families that they have huge hearts. Toys and other gifts allow children to focus on play rather than sometimes scary procedures,” spokesman Josh Wilson wrote in an email.

Unlike stuffed animals, the wooden figurines are easy to disinfect if they fall on the floor, Evans said. And they can stand up to a hard squeeze or two when young patients are frightened or hurting.

Gripping the birds can refocus your mind away from the pain, he said.

“You kind of transfer a lot of your energy from pain into your hand and because you’re squeezing that little bird, it’s like biting on a washcloth,” Evans said.

The care birds concept came from a woodcarving article that gave directions for shaping the small figurines, Evans said.

Up to that point, Evans would bring a folded towel with him to medical procedures and bite down hard on the cloth if the pain grew unbearable. He hated the thought of screaming, feeling an outcry would reflect badly on his Army unit.

Evans served in the 101st Airborne Division in the 1970s and hurt his back when he jumped from a helicopter during a training exercise, he said. The injury triggered an avalanche of health complications that have landed him in the hospital on multiple occasions.

Whenever he goes in for a medical procedure, he brings along the carved bird, which he’s named “Sherman.” The prototype fits snugly into his

Joe Evans, disabled

veteran palm and is without paint or other decoration. Evans calls him a “little bird in the raw.”

The ones given to Nemours were a bit flashier, thanks to Evans’ granddaughter. She and a group of friends from Northland church got together to paint the flock of figurines with plumage of yellow, indigo and burnt orange.

Evans also got help from a team of local carvers. The loss of dexterity in one hand made it tough for him to complete the care bird project himself, but the Deltona Woodcarvers Club volunteered to assist.

Club member Steve Bell said he finished about a dozen of the birds and is pleased that they’ve landed in the hands of children battling illness.

“My wife is always poking fun at me about giving away more stuff than I keep, and that’s true, but it’s just a kick to work on something and see someone smile,” Bell, 76, of Altamonte Springs said.

Evans said he hopes to present more care birds to patients in the coming year.

Several hours of work over about five days are required to complete each figurine, he estimated.

Bell said he’s promised to get carving at the start of January and imagines other club members will be happy to pitch in, too.