Veteran-founded · Chariton, Iowa
Woodworking, taught one lathe at a time in Chariton, Iowa.
I'm Don Roden — twenty-two years Air Force, sixty years on a lathe. One or two students at the lathe at a time. First class $105. Free monthly shop day for veterans.
Woodworking Classes
Six courses, $105 to $650. One or two students per session. No experience necessary.
See classesVeterans Day in the Shop
A free monthly shop day for veterans. Community projects. Bring nothing but yourself.
Learn moreCustom Pieces & Restoration
Commissions: urns, bowls, kitchen tools, kaleidoscopes. Furniture refinishing on request.
See the workMeet Don
Sixty years on a lathe. Twenty-two in uniform.
I started turning wood at eight years old, on my father's lathe in our basement. After twenty-two years in Aircraft Maintenance for the Air Force, I came back to the shop full time.
This workshop exists because of Project 22 — a documentary on veteran suicide that I saw before I started teaching. The lathe is the conversation. The piece is the proof you can still make something.
Why this work
What woodworking gives you back.
A short list, plain-spoken. Picked up by veterans who said this is what kept them coming back to the shop.
- Boosting overall mood
- Increasing mental clarity
- Reducing anxiety and stress
- Utilizing communication skills
- Improving fine motor skills
- Honing a creative skill
- Utilizing math skills
Classes
Start at any level.
Four priced courses. Class sizes of one or two. Materials included where listed.
Intro to Spindle Turning
$105
First class. Three hours at the lathe. No experience necessary.
Intro to the Wonderful World
$325
Spindles, door stops, kitchen tool blanks. Materials included.
Exploring Bowls
$650
Platters, bowls, and your first natural-edge bowl. Prereq: intro.
Taking Skills to a New Level
$650
Hollowing and epoxy turning. Prereq: Exploring Bowls.
A quiet mission
Twenty-two veterans a day take their own lives.
That number is why this workshop exists. If you wore the uniform, the lathe is yours on free monthly shop days. If you need to make a call right now, dial 988 and press 1.
As reported by VA-published figures
From the shop
Pieces from the shop.
Urns, bowls, platters, kitchen tools. Take a look — and ask about commissions.
Come turn wood with me.
Send a message. I read every one. If you'd rather call, I pick up between classes.
Veterans Woodworking Workshop · 118 North Grand St, Chariton, IA 50049