Hundreds of people looking for a good bargain came down to the Maple Ridge Seniors Activity Centre on May 4 for the community garage sale event.
More than 20 tables worth of stuff filled the event room, with items ranging from handmade jewelry and decor to vintage clothes and dolls.
Ridge Meadows Seniors Society events coordinator Katie Cowieson said she was delighted with the turnout that the event got, with a steady stream of people flowing in and out all afternoon.
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Peter Rubenuik was one of many locals who turned up to try and make a few bucks by selling some clothes and other items. But perhaps the biggest draw at Rubenuik’s table was a shiny violin, which he had painstakingly fixed up all on his own.
“This fiddle came with nothing on it,” said Rubenuik. “It was built in Alberta and I quickly realized how well it was built because I know all the specs on these things to get the best sound.”
He explained that as a luthier – someone who repairs stringed instruments – this was just one of many violins in his possession.
“I have $5,000 violins at home. And bows too, I’ve got bows that are about $1,200 each.”
Rubenuik said that several of his bows were made by members of the Hoyer family, a famed group of German bow makers.
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Although he’s been a luthier for decades now, Rubenuik’s love of the violin extends back to his childhood.
“I was playing violin when I was seven years old and then when I was 25 I started playing in a band,” he said. “I didn’t know anything back then, I just knew how to play it.”
It was when the Maple Ridge resident started having to get his violin repaired that he began his journey into not just playing them, but also fixing them up.
“When I started taking my violin down to Vancouver, just to fit a bridge would cost me $100 every time. So I started learning how to do it myself and I’ve been doing it about 40 years now.”