What a wonderful give away on GJ by Red Leader of the 1950's Craftsman Garage. It's nice to see such generosity. Looks like StevenBiars has this one all locked up... I just have one question for Steven, Where's the garage thread and project pictures? We need to see it all. If you had a thread that people could follow I'm sure you would get a lot more help from members here. There's always people with "extra" materials and such.
Firstly, I would like to thank all of you for your kind words, thoughts, offers, etc. I appreciate it more than you'll ever know. It's taken me all day to think of what to say, because after seeing the responses, I think I might have got some sawdust in my eyes earlier and thus my ability to see the keyboard has been vastly diminished.
I'm more than happy to share a day in my life, introduce you all to Katelynn, and show you the shop space I'll be working out of for now. 
Afterwards, perhaps we can all grow this idea into something bigger than us all. My goal is to not just limit the Amazing Workshop to the things I produce, but to expand this idea outward. Some of you have asked how you can help further this idea and there are many ways to do so, whether that's putting a milling machine to work helping make a specialty ventilator bracket for a wheelchair or simply spreading the word.
So, let's address the most obvious concern: I'm reasonably new around here, and there are a lot of dishonest people that would simply eBay the saw. So, because I want this project to be 100% open, my ebay username is
rocksandfossils
A quick visit reveals I do not have a selling account, just a buying account that I use to get harder to find pieces like
these pillow block bearings for a bandmill project. So on that aspect, there should be no worries whatsoever. I've also posted my resume (with contact info) on
my website.
A little more about me:
I grew up in a single parent house (mom) and it took my dad a while to get things together. We lived in a trailer without heat, just a kerosene heater. We would run the heater with the windows cracked while we were at church and then turn it out when we got home (so that we didn't end up asphyxiated) and hope the heat lasted until morning. I can remember waking up and being able to see my breath inside the house. It was crazy, but I appreciate this part of my life, as it made me who I am today.
Fast forward a few years, and my uncle Kenny (whom was very much a father figure throughout my life) was killed by a drunk driver (5/12/99). Kenny had always asked me to go to college, to help people when I could, and make life an adventure.
I graduated in 2002 from Portsmouth West High School, having spent 2 years in a split-education program where I went to vocational school for Engineering Technology, learning CAD and injection molding, using a Sherline Mini, etc. After graduating, I joined the United States Army as an Artilleryman, specifically in MOS
13M (Multiple Launch Rocket Systems). There I gained a love for the beauty of physics and mathematics, which I would pursue later in life.
After receiving papers that I was to be stationed in Korea... which kind of sucked because I was hoping for Germany, but would have to wait a few months in the jungle before a spot opened up for me in Deutschland... I went in for a physical and re-vaccination suite, ended up reacting with the Anthrax-B experimental vaccine, and almost died. That was the end of my military career, and I'm still trying to sort everything out with the VA over some serious lasting health problems (kidneys had shut down).
Fast forward a few years, and I became reacquainted with the
love of my life. I had known Amber from back when I was in high school (used to eat taco bell just to flirt with her), but after years had passed, somehow the stars aligned and we ended up together. She had a daughter (Katelynn) who was barely 3, with no father in the picture, whatsoever. This was crucial.
Katelynn was born at 25 weeks after Amber had severe per-clampsia and had to undergo an emergency c-section. Katelynn spent the first 6 months of her life in the NICU at U.K. Medical Center, and even though many doctors has written her off (she was 1 lb 7 oz) she made it. Because of an hypoxic event, partly due to a problem with a ventilator, Katelynn has many symptoms that are similar to that of Cerebral Palsy. She has an erratic 3rd chromosome, which triggered Chronic Lung Disease and Polycystic Kidney Disease. Doctors wanted to write her off, but not us.
Katelynn shortly after birth:
Katelynn is ventilator dependent for pressure support purposes, but we've had her weaned off of the ventilator before for months at a time. Her kidneys ended up finally giving out late last year, but she gets peritoneal dialysis every night (it's a lot easier on her than hemodialysis would be). Unfortunately, because her special needs are considered a pre-existing condition, Katelynn does not qualify for the organ transplant list, and must have a live donor give her a kidney at some point in the future. Currently, our goal is to make sure she grows as strong as possible before undergoing such a procedure. The reason for this is that Katelynn's existing kidneys are the size of adult kidneys, due to the cysts, and because the kidney is such a vascular organ, they usually don't take the old ones out (they simply put a new one in).
Katelynn is (for all intents and purposes) a million dollar baby, many times over. However, I would rather work my fingers to the bone for an eternity to provide her with the best possible life than to answer on my day of judgement for why I did not. With that said, Katelynn is a very happy kid. We've just got her to start eating semi-solid food (she gets her nutrition through a G-tube). Katelynn doesn't talk, but does communicate through hand signals, primarily through the answering of yes or no questions, gesturing, eye gazing, etc. We're working on trying to get her an augmentative communications device in the future that will make it much easier for KK to communicate
She loves dinosaurs, loves CARS, and loves the outdoors. The first "Amazing Workshop" production was a modified backpack (when she was younger) that would allow me to pack Katelynn through the woods on my chest so that she could venture out on trails. No such carrier existed that could accommodate her, so I built one (the "
Katelynn Carrier" click for photo). This later lead to
sledding,
bowling (noticed the modified chair),
running in a race (to raise money for a friend with Cancer),
horseback riding (at Kamp Dovetail),
river sweeping (found 56 basketballs that day on less than a mile of Ohio River beach / bank).
So there you have it... Shop photos/video will follow in the next day or so. This is just some of the stuff I've made possible by thinking outside of the box and developing various things for various tasks for children with special needs. I hope to expand this so that Katelynn and others can do so much more. I've been blessed in life with riches beyond my wildest dreams, even though my bank account doesn't reflect such. Some things in life can't be bought, they can only be experienced, and I hope to bring those experiences to as many people as possible. My motto is 1L2L (One life to LIVE) and you've got to make the best of what you've got.
Solutions don't exist for children like Katelynn, so together we can change that. I've been dying to help out on some Habitat for Humanity houses with Katelynn, so hopefully this coming summer we can do some of those as well. This is my life, and this is what drives me. Feel free to ask me anything you wish.
Oh, and Happy Holidays to all! Furthermore, thanks to RedLeader for making a thread like this possible in the first place.
P.S. Some of you have asked about shop space. I'm currently going through limbo (have space in my stepfather's garage) because my dad passed away unexpectedly on October 3rd (sudden cardiac arrest), so his estate is going through probate. As such, I don't have the massive amounts of space that I once had to work in, but I'm working on changing that and should have a lot more space soon.
). 
