By David Wahl
Your Hands Are Connected to Your Head Experienced woodturners mentor students at the Early College Opportunities magnet school
Above: Mentor David Wahl and his student Daniel turn a baseball bat on a lathe.
Working with mentor Bob Siegel, Carlos learns how to find the center of a log to turn it. Above: Curtis proudly displays the high chair he made under the tutelage of volunteer mentor Bruce Kohl at Early College Opportunities.
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ast January, 15 members of The Enchanted Woodturners (sfturners.org), a chapter of the American Association of Woodturners, volunteered to mentor kids in the wood shop at Santa Fe High School. Mostly retired men and women, we wanted to give something to these kids that would help them in their lives, in the way we were encouraged in school. We often tell them, “Learning to do things with your hands gives you confidence to do things with your head.” The kids develop confidence in themselves, their studies, and their lives, and the confidence they gain in the wood shop makes them want to come to school for their other subjects, too. Our mentoring has a profound effect on each student. Take Luis, who came to a volunteer all excited after he had turned a pen on the lathe for first time in his life. “I showed this pen to to all of my teachers, and they all thought it was beautiful—and some even wanted to buy one,” he exclaimed. “And when I showed my math teacher, she thought it was beautiful, too, and after looking at it she said, ‘Well, if you can learn to do this, then you can learn math in my class.’ I told her I know I can.” Luis paused a moment and added, “When l told her that, it was the first time I really believed it.”
When we encourage our students to continue their education and training in the new Early College Opportunities (ECO) applied science magnet school, which now occupies the old VoTech site off Zia Road, we hear two comments: “If I can keep going to school, I can make something of myself,” and, “If I can keep going to school, I can be someone.” We agree! But to make the ECO School really work, more volunteers are needed—not just in the wood shop, but in home building, auto repair, food systems, solar energy, and math and English tutoring. Join us as a mentor at ECO and see for yourself. When you mentor, you will receive your students’ gratitude and warmth, and personal fulfillment in return. To learn more or to volunteer, email Dana Richards at earlycollege@sfps.k12.nm.us or call 505-690-5500. sfahba.com
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