Watching bright-eyed youngsters deftly handle heavy duty power tools and proudly show off the products of their handiwork gave immense satisfaction to more than a dozen expats who chipped in seed money to start up a carpentry workshop program in Santa Cruz de la Soledad.
The exhibition held Sunday, February 3 on the esplanade outside the village church was put together with the aim of saying “thank you” to supporters who helped get the project off the ground last May. Guests wandered around to see the junior craftsmen at work, goods from a sales display and listen in on a talk about how the program operates. Afterwards the youngsters handed out toy cars and trucks as tokens of appreciation to project sponsors while their parents dished out homemade snacks.
Modeled after the successful Have Hammers … Will Travel program, the Saturday morning woodworking classes in Santa Cruz take place at the workshop of local carpenter and head instructor Joel Morando. The program has attracted some 30 boys and girls aged 10 to 15 who have gained skills to turn out a wide array of well-crafted goods.
Useful household items include towel, toilet paper, soap and toothbrush holders; spice racks and standing lamps. Decorative objects range from picture frames to charming models of the church façade. The budding carpenters are also making toys and even scratching posts and kitty condos for feline pets.
The main objective of the program is to give young people an opportunity to learn practical skills, techniques and safety measures needed to take up carpentry and woodworking as a trade or satisfying hobby. As a bonus, it offers them a positive way to occupy idle hours, serving as a deterrent against falling into delinquency in a village where job opportunities are scarce and substance abuse among youth is a growing problem.
“The kids are fantastic. I really enjoy working with them,” says workshop volunteer Ron Johnson, a woodworking hobbyist who lives in nearby San Nicolas.
Donations from the community provided funding to purchase an initial supply of materials, tools and equipment. The encouraging news from project coordinator Alberto Costales is that the sale of workshop output has turned a promising idea into a self-sustaining enterprise.
Shoppers will find the Santa Cruz product line up for grabs at the weekly Ajijic Artisans Market, open Fridays, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at La Huerta event center on the western outskirts of town.
For more information about the workshop program, contact Costales at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..