Master the Arts

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Christopher Williams
  • 1st Special Operations Wing Public Affairs
On occasion of retirement many friends, co-workers and families gather together to celebrate an Airman's contribution to their. The final act of appreciation is the presentation of the shadow box, that contains an American flag and various medals and awards earned through a military career. The Frame Shop at Hurlburt Field specializes in making shadow boxes and many other frames to make that day special.

"The Hurlburt Field frame shop makes it a must use service because of the variety of expertise provided by the framer, Dan Ruddell," said Donna Barsom, director of the arts and crafts center. "He is 'Master Framer' qualified and is able to frame anything from personal things like diplomas and family photos and portraits, as well as special military items like coins, daggers, flags and maps."

The frame shop comes equipped with metal and wood frames in a large selection of materials and colors, foam-core back-boards, frame hardware and a variety of glass which includes standard and non-glare glass. If the frame shop does not have a specific frame material in they can special order the part within a week.

Dan Roudell, manager of the frame shop, has worked on Hurlburt Field for 13 years and specializes in customizing any military memorabilia.

"Ruddell takes special care to accomplish all frame orders, no matter how small," said Barsom.

"I am 70 years old," Ruddell said. "I love what I do and take pride in helping the military community."

Civilians, active-duty, retired military, contractors and military family members are eligible to use the services. The Frame Shop is equipped with excellent frame equipment tools.

One of the tools Ruddell uses is a Wizard Computerized Matt Cutter that executes cuts in any configuration to surround patches, coins and flags. Any cuts made for a frame design used for a squadron often can be saved for future uses. The frame shop also has the ability to print high quality JPEG images up to 60' by 40' for any project.

The normal turnaround time for custom frame orders is approximately two weeks. The Frame Shop at Hurlburt Field is conveniently located on base which makes placing and picking up frame orders less time consuming than leaving the base.

The frame shop is open Tuesday through Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is located in the Arts & Crafts Center, 552 Hamby Place, Building 90612.

For more information, please contact Donna Barsom, at 884-6942.