Photo: Courtesy of The Brickyard Collaborative
LYNN, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — For their spring break, four Lynn middle and high schoolers spent their time turning a pile of wood into a fully functioning rowboat with help from a local nonprofit organization. The students got down to work at The Brickyard Collaborative, a "makerspace" in the city that offers aspiring craftsmen the tools, community, and workshop they need to finish dream projects.
The finished three-seat navy and yellow rowboat was launched into the Atlantic for a spin, comfortably fitting a couple passengers for a daytime cruise. Michael McLaughlin, a longtime woodworking teacher, told WBZ's Brooke McCarthy that he worked with the kids to help guide their vision to reality.
"The majority of it was pine boards, the bottom was marine-grade plywood— it was a well built boat They didn't feel they had any skills, and by the time the project was over they were amazed at what they could make," McLaughlin said.
"When they got to drive the boat around at the launch— it was magic," said Ted Dillard of The Brickyard Collaborative.
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The students decided to donate the finished rowboat to veterans in Lynn. Dillard says he hopes more students and creatives come to the Brickyard Collaborative by continuing to partner with community boat building in Boston to fulfill other dream projects.
"To me, it's the pinnacle of woodworking. To make a boat, you're making something with life," Dillard said.
WBZ's Brooke McCarthy (@BrookeWBZ) reports.
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