The Memorial Garden at Tam has a new addition this year. In the far left corner, a new bench has been set up, adding a fresh feel to the cozy nook. Starting this project in the last few weeks of the previous school year, current sophomores, Jason Buechel, Jace Monti, Jason Zook, and Brycen Falzone all worked on designing and creating the bench now stationed in the garden. “We kind of divided up the work, but mostly all worked on it together,” said Brycen Falzone, “We designed it together. We built it together.”

Diving into the process of actually creating the bench based to the design they created themselves, gave the students a view into the real life applications of the craft they were studying. “Half the time we were able to actually build and half the time we would be on the computers, designing, so it’s the real process and knowing how the software, hardware, and process link together that showed us the real world aspect of what we were doing,” said Jason Buechel. According the boys, one of the aspects that made building this project easier was the flexibility their teacher, Geo Monley, gave them when it came to using the Wood Shop. “We could come in at lunch, tutorial, or after school to work on the bench,” said Buechel, “Because we started so late, we ended up running out of time, so those extra hours really helped us finish. I think we basically completed by the time the year ended.”

According to Geo Monley, their Principles of Technology teacher, “I am here at lunch time so kids who know how to use stuff, come in and do stuff.” The Wood Shop is open to both current or simply knowledgeable students and teachers. Even outside of school hours, the shop is open to adults and kids who are interested in using the tools available. Class and event timings can be found on the Tam Makers website: http://www.tammakers.org/