Think about the number of strokes, notches, marks that go into carving a carousel animal. The artists put their own character into the carousel characters.
But when you look a little closer at the carousel animals in Saranac Lake, you notice something similar. The animals and the themes painted on them are rooted in the Adirondacks. So is the spirit of the project to build a carousel in Saranac Lake from scratch.
"Saranac Lake deserves something special," said Reverend Randy Cross, the project manager for the carousel project.
Something special to add to and highlight what the village already has to offer.
"This project is going to be one of those magnets that will draw people to Saranac Lake," said Cross.
Cross says the project has been in the works for almost a decade now. Artists from across the country have donated their time to carve 23 animals in all.
Even the building being built for the carousel is rooted in the region along with the heart put in it.
"Over $150,000 of labor and material have been donated from local people," said Cross.
The hope is that the project will help draw more people to the area.
"I think it's going to help our town out in a lot of different ways," he said.
The artists who left a mark on this project hope to also leave a mark on this community.
"Everything in town here, a lot of it is grassroots," said Cross. "Probably goes hand and hand with the Adirondack man attitude."
