On May 7, Michael’s Woodshop presented the Distinguished Volunteer Award to volunteers CJ Staton and Mell Cunningham in recognition of their “many years of consistent and dedicated contributions of time and talent to the development and operation of Michael’s Woodshop”.
CJ began volunteering in the fall of 2017, when Michael’s Woodshop was still in the concept phase. He was engaged in the initial planning and construction, helping with the installation of the insulation and walls, running conduit, pulling hundreds of feet of wire and installing dozens and dozens of receptacles throughout the shop. He is a regular volunteer during program sessions and is in the process of upgrading our jigs and templates using his 3D printer. Among his most notable and valuable contributions has been the development of many of our most successful programs; Pinewood Derby Days, Baloo the Builder, Webelos Build It and our Youth Assistant Program, which he continues to lead today.
Mell began volunteering in the spring of 2018, assisting with the completion of the lumber rack, the first major improvement in Michael’s Woodshop. For the next 7 months, Mell volunteered on an almost full-time basis completing the interior improvements including all of the work benches, shelving, tool storage systems and the dust collection system. After the shop officially opened in November 2018 (and continuing today), Mell has consistently spent several mornings a week in the shop working on numerous shop improvements and preparing materials for youth activities. He is a prolific “jig maker”, designing and constructing jigs to support youth activities and is currently developing our third summer camp project design (including project prototypes, jigs and evaluating process flow).
Please join us in recognizing CJ and Mell for their incredible contributions to Michael’s Woodshop. If you are interested in volunteering, please see “Join the Michael’s Woodshop Team” on our webpage, or email any questions to MichaelsWoodshop.CWBS@gmail.com.
