Two students in Mr. Oliver’s Advanced Woods class at Crookston High School created charcuterie boards that will be donated to the United Way for their silent auction that is taking place from December 4 to December 9. The students are seniors Isaac Thomforde and Brannon Tangquist.
The United Way reaches out to Travis Oliver yearly for donations. This is the third year in a row that the class has created projects for the auction. The students are in Oliver Advanced Woods Class, and they use a CNC Router, which is a cutting board controlled by a computer. The students create a project in the software, and the CNC Router makes it a reality. Oliver explains why he has the kids participate in the project.
“It’s great for the kids to be able to give back,” Oliver said. “We always try to come up with something new and different and what’s popular. Try just to create something unique, one-of-a-kind, and I think the kids enjoy it.”
The students used hickory wood to make the boards, and they used a grinder to smooth out the edges. Then, they drilled holes and added handles. The students then asked Ms. Boll to laser-engrave a design that said: “Charcuterie. A fancy French term for adult Lunchables.”
Senior Isaac Thomforde said Travis approached him and asked if he wanted to do the project. Thomforde felt this was a great way to serve the community and gain valuable experience.
“Experience is always helpful when you’re working with wood projects,” Thomforde said. “The more you work with a certain material, or you do a certain project in this class, you can get it done more efficiently. And if Brannon and I were to go into a career in woodworking or anything like that, we have this experience to quickly and efficiently make high-quality things. But with United Way, we just saw it was an awesome opportunity to serve the community, and we know that with this auction, the money is gonna go to a really good cause. And we just delight in it.”
Senior Brannon Tangquist was also selected for the project, and he describes what he learned during the process and how Mr. Oliver helped them.
“He helps us throughout the process. Last year, I made six charcuterie boards for my family for Christmas, “Tangquist said. “This is pretty similar stuff, and he just showed us how to work with others as well as just some technical stuff with the wood and what you need to do to get it looking good and to get it just quality. There’s finite things that you don’t realize you need to do when making stuff like this. For example, make sure that the holes and the handles are lined up right because if they’re not, you’re going to have to re-drill holes. And you need to be very diligent with what you’re doing; you can’t go fast. You just got to take the process methodical so that everything comes out right and you don’t make unnecessary mistakes.”
Brannon and Isaac also say that to keep them in good shape, put butcher block oil on them every couple of months and do not put them in the dishwasher.
