When pigs fly
A creative solution to slowing traffic
By Terri Wiebold; photos courtesy of Ron Di Donato
While in self-quarantine, some have been busy doing home renovation and organization projects, gardening or binge-watching shows on Netflix. Others have taken on new hobbies, like papier-mâché.
The Castle Pines Connection received a phone call from Ron Di Donato, a 72-year-old retired excavation company owner who was in search of newspapers for a craft project to do with his grandkids. Di Donato lives roughly 35 miles northwest of Castle Pines in a small town called Indian Hills, population 1,280. He has lived in Colorado all his life, with the exception of two years he spent in the military.
Having recently done some “pandemic purging” ourselves, The Castle Pines Connection had set aside some archived papers to recycle, and we were happy to oblige Di Donato’s request.
“This project has been fun and has kept me at home where I should be,” stated Di Donato. “I had never worked with papier-mâché before, but it just looked like fun to try.”
Di Donato went on YouTube and watched videos about how to make paper mache. “I have no background in any type of artwork, but I have a lot of time on my hands with this pandemic,” he stated.
The pig went from paper mache to getting a coat of fiberglass to a final paint job. The wings flap with a motor Di Donato put in its body. Di Donato placed the pig on a high pole in a pasture across the street from where he lives with the hopes it might slow the traffic down. “It seems to do the job pretty well; everyone slows to see the flying pink pig! My neighbors like it a lot and hope no one will harm it,” he said.
Although Di Donato’s granddaughter didn’t really “get” the pig thing, he joked, “The way I see it, we will all be back to our normal lives when pigs fly.”
