KO Students Build, Donate Chairs to Dormont Pool

junior Jacob Krepley thinks he could probably build an Adirondack chair with his eyes closed.

If anyone could, he—or one of his classmates from the Tech Ed Club—would be the one to do it.

The students have spent the past few weeks building the chairs assembly-line style, and they donated the finished products to on Wednesday.

“They were pretty popular last year, and we’re glad we have more,” said assistant pool manager Mary Jo Maloney. “You can definitely tell that people want those. We really appreciate having them.”

This year, they added 12 more handmade chairs to the collection. Some of the chairs were on display at the in May.

Maloney said it’s obvious that pool patrons appreciate the chairs. They’re the first to be snapped up on a busy day, and those lucky enough to get them don’t move.

The 22 members of the Tech Ed Club are students who have completed Tech Ed classes and were looking for more challenging work. All students who take Tech Ed build their own Adirondack chair during their sophomore year, so they all had some experience with the project.

The club, which normally meets after school, also is responsible for building the sets for the annual .

Seeing their projects in use by the public is a bit surreal, but also pretty cool, the students said.

Senior MacKenzie Martin said it’s a proud moment to see pool patrons enjoying the chairs, but she and her classmates said they prefer to observe from a distance rather than take credit for the project.

Junior Jordan Bayless said it was nice to be able to build something that the community could use.

“More or less, they benefit the community better,” Bayless said. “It’s better than having the community spend money on 20 new chairs, when it’s something we can build and give to them.”

In addition to benefitting Dormont Pool, Krepley said building the chairs gave the students a valuable opportunity to learn a specific craft. He plans to become a carpenter, a field he’s always found interesting.

Tech Ed teacher Mike Magri said he doesn’t know of any other schools in the area that give their Tech Ed students such freedom with projects. His students also have built elaborate desks, coffee tables, full sets of bedroom furniture—this year, junior built a hammock stand.

“The nice thing about this (Adirondack chair) project is that it’s the perfect size,” Magri said. “It really allows us to get into the community, and last year the Friends of Dormont Pool loved it. It’s something that hopefully we’ll be able to keep the momentum going.”

That's something the Friends of Dormont Pool, who helped initiate the program last year, would love. Materials are donated, in part, by Lowes Home Improvement Center in Scott Township.

"This is such a great project," Friends member Colleen Lehman said in an email Thursday. "Friends of Dormont Pool, Lowes and the tech ed group pull this together ... Really an awesome community effort!"

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