Originally published at: Member Newsletter – November 2024 – The Claremont MakerSpace
Hello CMS members! It has been a busy fall season and I’m finally sitting to send you some updates. First, I’m excited to announce that Cortney Nichols has joined our staff as the Interim Director of Education and Workforce Development. She will be your primary point of contact for all class related questions and instructor scheduling. We relaunched our Artist in Residence program with CMS Member Jane Kolias, as a recycled metal artist working in the AiR studio this fall – more below. The holiday decor is now in retail outlets so it’s time to plan to deck the halls. Cortney is also working on holiday events that are described below.
CMS News…
Relaunching the Artist in Residence Program – Our front lobby is transformed into an Artist in Residence gallery, and we are fortunate that member Jane Kolias is kicking off the fall AiR program with some exciting plans. She will be engaging with area high school students, creating a class in designing with metal, and creating a family oriented metal class. A “Meet the Artist” reception was held on 10/28. Also, CMS was awarded a grant from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts to fund the program for 2025. The call for winter artist applications will be published later this month.
Workforce Development – In addition to Cortney Nichols, Alex Herzog will be consulting with our team to build a Workforce Development plan and curriculum. This program will enable area residents to attend multiple training sessions that prepares them for entry level jobs with regional employers, particularly in the manufacturing sector. We will share more about our plans next month.
Maker Market & Open House – This season, CMS will host the annual Holiday Maker Market with an open house on Sunday, December 8th from 1- 4pm. All members are welcome to participate and sell or display your handmade products. Please complete this form by November 22nd to have a market table at the event or to volunteer.
Holiday Family Ornament Classes – NEW this year – CMS adopted the Christmas Tree in the entrance of City Hall and we will be running family classes to make ornaments to decorate the tree and to take home. Ornaments will be made from wood, acrylic, textiles and glass beads, and they will be customized with your family surname. If you are interested in volunteering to help with these classes, please contact [email protected].
Interested in being a Desker? As our number of classes grow, we are still recruiting new desker volunteers to man our front desk. As a Desker, you earn discounts on your monthly membership, depending on the number of shifts you work. If interested, reach out to Valerie at [email protected].
Shop Updates & Classes
Wood Shop – Woodturning class has returned with member Jeff Ladd teaching a members only class this month! It was a late addition with few slots so register quickly. The wood shop is keeping pretty busy and besides Peter Gunn’s cutting board class next week, he has added his end-grain cutting board to the December calendar. The ShopBot class is also back on the calendar. When in the wood shop, please remember to clean your work area and check the sawdust collector level before you leave for the day.
Jewelry Studio – Please welcome new Shop Lead Theodore Castellani! He is a jeweler and has added several new metalsmithing classes to the schedule; one is already full but there are still openings for the silver band ring and the stamped silver band ring. Also, a new instructor will be teaching wire wrapped jewelry.
Metal Shop – Please welcome Sheldon Heselton as Co-Lead of the Metal Shop with Jo Ann Clifford. Sheldon is a welding inspector and has added a couple more stick welding classes to the schedule this month. Also, watch for Jo Ann’s multi-media fish class to be added to the schedule later this month. Several new pieces of equipment were added to the Metal Shop this past month and more information will be posted about them.
Machine Shop – A large CNC Mill was generously donated to CMS by Latva Machine earlier this fall. The electrical work to power the mill is in progress. Shop Lead Joe Sneed updated the manual mills so they operate consistently, and he will begin to offer manual machining classes next month. A CNC Machining class is not expected until the new year.
Electronics, Digital Fabrication & Amateur Radio – Several CMS members received their Amateur Radio License last month as part of a 2-day CMS workshop – congratulations to them! There is another license exam offered this month by TSRC. Shop and Radio Club Lead Tiffany Vincent has a fantastic speaker lined up for the next meetup.
Fiber Arts Studio – CMS Community Quilts monthly events started last month to make quilts for local non-profit organizations. This is a free volunteer working group that anyone can register for. Besides volunteering for a good cause, you also learn some basic quilting skills. A new Hand Sewing and Mending class is added to the calendar this month. Shop Lead Allison Zito is also hosting the Open Sew-in and teaching the Mid-arm Quilt Machine class.
Computer Lab – New in the classroom this month is a Linocut Print class with a new instructor. The large format printer and special photography printer are working well and any member can request certification to use them from Shop Lead Kevin Tyson. There is a fee to cover the inks. Kevin is also creating a new digital printing class.
CMS SHOP LEADS:
Wood Shop: John Lambert and Peter Gunn [email protected]
Machine Shop: Joe Sneed [email protected]
Metal Shop: Jo Ann Clifford and Sheldon Heselton [email protected]
Jewelry Studio: Theodore Castellani [email protected]
Electronics & Digital Fab. Lab: Tiffany Vincent and Brian Spahr [email protected]
Fiber Arts Studio: Allison Zito [email protected]
Computer Lab: Kevin Tyson [email protected]
ShopBot: Russ Scaduto [email protected]
REMINDERS
- Guests/non-members/children are NOT allowed in the building unless they are registered for a class, scheduled for a tour, or attending a public/guest event. We are considering changes but until then, please respect this CMS policy.
- Support your maker community and remember to clean up your work area before you leave.
There is a lot happening at CMS this fall! I’m sharing a few photos below of the AiR Meet the Artist event and Jane’s beautiful work in our lobby and her studio. Many thanks to our volunteer Shop Leads and Deskers who keep CMS running, and thank you for being part of the CMS community ! …f
Felicia Dalke, Executive Director, [email protected]
[Note – This WordPress newsletter doesn’t always translate well to email, so please excuse any format issues!]
