Lighthouse/ Lodestar

Maker VISTA members Claire Tiffany-Appleton and Anna Milada Grossi, serving at Lodestar and Lighthouse respectively, had the opportunity to kick off their service year together with a hands-on making activity. They were invited to collaborate on the creation of a “Maker Bar” at Oakland International High School. They visited the school in August and discussed possible layouts for the space with Brooke Toczylowski, the Program Director of Agency by Design Oakland, and Aaron Vanderwerff, the Creativity Lab Director at Lighthouse.

After surveying the room and drafting different blueprints, all four collaborators came together and shared their designs to create a functional and low-cost plan, working around the existing furniture and space constraints. Claire and Anna designed and cut out a new plywood countertop to cover the current small and dated one. The wavy shape of the bar invites collaboration, since people will sit at an angle to one another. A challenge they faced was to use all of the materials without any waste, so after cutting out the countertop, they used the remaining plywood to create shelving and to continue the wave pattern. The final space is brighter, more open, and inviting for future making activities.