Home-built desks give students ‘a place of their own’

Steve Weinberg heard about a carpenter in California who was building desks for low-income kids attending school remotely who had no space of their own to work.

“I could do something like that,” Weinberg thought.

He works as a recruiter and consultant in the technology industry, but he’s always been handy. Twenty years ago, a neighbor taught him carpentry basics.

Weinberg took the plans the carpenter had posted online and made modifications: sturdier legs and a back to the cubby underneath so belongings wouldn’t fall out.

Two weeks later, Weinberg gave his first desk to a neighbor boy. Then he made more, working in the garage of his Scottsdale house.

Weinberg does the noisy work, cutting and sanding the wood, during the day. He makes calls and check emails for work covered in sawdust. Then he assembles the desks at night, sometimes until 3 a.m.

In a day, he can make four desks. They’re sturdy. He’s trying to hurry because since word got out in a video he posted and in a TV news segment, he’s been flooded with requests.

One was from a grandmother whose grandson sprawls on the end of his bed to do his schoolwork. Another was from a kindergarten teacher who’d like 13 desks for his class. He’s made 20 desks so far and has requests for 50 more.

Weinberg started a GoFundMe to help with costs, about $30 to $40 depending on the materials. Home Depot donated $500 worth of wood.

Weinberg is happy to do the work. It wasn’t until he began delivering the desks that he realized what a big deal it was.

“You can see how much it means to them,” Weinberg said. “It’s a place of their own.”

You can request a desk at steve@nextwaveconsulting.net.