FAIRFIELD – Patrons to the Fairfield Public Library have grown accustomed to seeing tables dedicated to putting jigsaw puzzles together, a fun way to pass the time on a cold winter day.

More recently, those patrons might have noticed that one of the puzzles at the library depicts something familiar: a local business. The puzzle in question depicts the outside of the grocery store Everybody’s, and was made from a photo taken of the store by Fairfield photographer and videographer Werner Elmker.

The 500-piece puzzle was first displayed at the library on Jan. 30, and after what Elmker estimated to be 17-person hours of work, it was finished four days later. Fairfield Library Director Alecs Schmidt Mickunas said it has been taken apart so that other community members can experience the thrill of putting it together again.

This puzzle is noteworthy for a number of reasons, and not just because it depicts a local business and was made from a photograph from a local photographer. This is an especially high-quality puzzle made from wood and not cardboard. Every piece has a unique shape, Elmker said, and scattered throughout the puzzle are 17 pieces depicting familiar shapes like a ship, a bird, a car and an anchor.

IDEA TAKES FLIGHT

Elmker said he had been thinking about converting one of his photos into a puzzle, and when he searched online for companies to produce such a thing, he was surprised to find that he had a lot of options. Unfortunately, he also found that most of them make the puzzles from cardboard, and that their images are not high resolution.

“I’m a quality freak, so I want the best,” Elmker said. “I try to get the highest quality cameras, microphones and live-streaming equipment. That’s what I’m into.”

Elmker said he feels that, since Fairfield is a “high quality community,” the town’s residents deserve the highest quality of materials. That’s why he chose to go with a high-end puzzle-making company called Wentworth Puzzles in England, which not only produces high-resolution images on its puzzles, it also makes them out of wood.

EVERYBODY’S

Elmker chose to convert into a puzzle a photo he took of the outside of Everybody’s Whole Foods in Fairfield. He said he loves promoting the store, and that he recently made a video where he put a GoPro camera on the toy train the store sets up during Christmas so that viewers can things from the point of view of the train.

Paul Praither, co-owner of Everybody’s, is a good friend of Elmker’s. Elmker said that Praither and Everybody’s are know for their generosity in many different contexts, and that Praither is a big supporter of the Christmas lights on the square.

Elmker gave the Everybody’s puzzle to Praither, but after working on it for a while, Praither told him it was too difficult, and suggested putting it somewhere where the whole community could work on it.

“It had every shape imaginable,” Praither said. “It was crazy.”

MOVE TO LIBRARY

Elmker took the puzzle to the Fairfield Public Library on Jan. 30. He didn’t realize before then that the library has a vibrant community of puzzlers and that they’re always working on one. Schmidt Mickunas said the library has about 20 puzzles that it rotates between.

Elker said he liked the idea of turning the puzzle into a community challenge because “it takes a village to create something great.”

“I thought it would be nice to have many people try to solve this puzzle,” he said.

Elmker found the puzzle to be pretty challenging.

“It took me 15 minutes to find two connecting pieces,” he said. “You have to look really carefully, but it was so satisfying to find them and put them into place. I can now understand the enthusiasm of puzzling.”

Elmker’s friends Michael and Margaret Lerom are avid puzzlers, and they took a special interest in putting this puzzle together. Schmidt Mickunas said people come in all day long to work on the puzzle.

“Some people come in the morning, take a break, and come back in the afternoon,” Schmidt Mickunas said.

The library put up a sign by the puzzle thanking Everybody’s for its years of support. Schmidt Mickunas said the grocery store has been making regular contributions to the library for such a long time that it has now moved into the top tier for endowments, an honor that goes to people and organizations who have given more than $40,000.

“Without Everybody’s contributions, we’d not be able to purchase the books, DVDs and other things that we purchase every week,” Schmidt Mickunas said. “It’s been a very significant part of our funding for library materials, so we’re extremely grateful for the generosity of Everybody’s.”

WHAT’S NEXT?

Elmker said he’s already making plans to have another of his photos converted into a jigsaw puzzle. But this time, he wants the community to vote on which one, so he’s selected 15 of his favorite photos and posted them on his Facebook page, asking residents to comment on the photo they like best. Whichever photo gets the most comments is the one that will be made into the next puzzle.

Some of the photos Elmker chose as contenders include wildlife photos of squirrels and geese, an old tractor at Maasdam Barns, a lightning strike near his house, and aerial photos of Central Park in all four seasons.

“I want the next one to be 1,000 pieces at least,” Elmker said. “At some point, we might start a fundraising activity for this.”

Until Elmker’s second puzzle is made, the puzzling community’s next challenge will be putting together a 3,000-piece behemoth at the library, courtesy of an employee of Everybody’s. This puzzle depicts 100 of The Beatles top songs, and measures 3 by 5 feet.

“That will give us something to do while we wait for spring,” Elmker said.