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Most of the calls I receive are ’robocalls’, so I usually do not answer my phone if I do not recognize the caller.  But, for some reason, when Greg Dettwiler called, I picked up the phone.  I was glad that I did.  Greg’s company, G.J. Gardner, had just completed the construction of a new home in Fallbrook.  They had 38 sheets of exterior OSB sheathing left over. Our friend, Jason Harper of Pine Tree Lumber in Fallbrook, suggested that G.J. Gardner donate the sheathing to the Warrior Village Project. We are grateful to Greg Dettwiler and the G.J. Gardner for their [...]

Stephanie Graham, Manager of the Ferguson Bath, Kitchen & Lighting Gallery in Vista, was quick to say “Yes” when we asked her to support the Warrior Village Project and San Marcos High School by donating plumbing fixtures for our cottages.  She donated kitchen sinks and bathroom vanities.  The sinks are top-of-the line, and the vanities are pretty fancy for our humble cottages.  But, I have confidence that our Interior Design student partners at Palomar College will be able to  make the rest of our cottages look as good as the plumbing fixtures! The next time you are shopping for top-of-the line [...]

Gary Warth, award winning reporter for The San Diego Union-Tribune, visited our build site at San Marcos High School on January 10.  He subsequently published a great article, ‘Students learning building skills by creating homes for veterans’ in the January 14th online edition of the Union-Tribune (January 15th hard copy edition).

Our cottages are being constructed in modules.  When the modules are set on a permanent foundation, they will be bolted together along the ‘marriage line’ where the two modules come together:  at the floor joists, at the end walls, and across the top at the ridge beams.  This requires large bolts that can withstand California earthquakes.  With four modules, and a marriage line length of about 70 feet for each cottage, we need a lot of bolts.  Our friends at Ababa Bolt gave us what we needed.  They gave us 80 5/8" x 5" bolts and 40 3/4" x 5" bolts, [...]

One of the core values of Harbor Freight is giving back to the great communities where they live, work and serve, with their philanthropy focused on K—12 Education, Veterans and Police & Fire. An associate at the Harbor Freight Tools store at 820 Civic Center Drive in Vista told us about Harbor Freight’s Giving Back program. Through this program, Harbor Freight donates Gift Cards to schools that can be used to buy tools at Harbor Freight Tools stores. We are grateful to Harbor Freight for the donation of a $100 Gift Card to SMHS. The Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize [...]

Our students will soon be installing a Water Supply system and a Drain- Waste-Vent (DWV) system (aka plumbing) in each of our cottages. The word plumbing comes from the Latin word for lead, plumbum, because the Romans used lead pipes to distribute water (before we knew that lead was toxic!). King Minos of Crete had the first flushing toilet over 2,800 years ago, but we weren’t aware of the importance of DWV systems until doctors made the connection between the filth of open sewers and the spread of plague. Ever since, plumbers have been making our lives more comfortable while saving [...]

H.G. Fenton Company creates Lifestyle Opportunities where Employees Flourish, Residents Live Well and Businesses Succeed. H.G Fenton also sponsors the Green Build Tech Academy at North County Trade Tech. The Academy was founded to fuse specific “Green” STEM education with college and career preparation programs, specifically in the construction and engineering design sectors. We are grateful to the H.G. Fenton Company for a $1,000 donation to The San Marcos Promise for the Warrior Village Project.

Our students have pounded a lot of nails (and bent quite a few!) with framing hammers in the last 4 months. But, they are also learning how to use labor-saving and time-saving power tools, like nail guns, to prepare them for careers in construction. While ordering supplies from HD Supply White Cap, Jon Hill, one of our AGC instructors, asked HD Supply if they would donate a couple of boxes of collated nails to the Warrior Village Project for our nail guns. HD Supply was quick to say yes. HD Supply donated a box of 3.25 inch collated nails as [...]

The Building Industry Association of San Diego County has asked members to support our program by donating materials, journeymen to teach our students, as well as dollars to purchase tools and materials. Guy Asaro, President & CEO of Meridian Development, shrewdly took advantage of Black Friday savings to acquire and donate a motorized 12” compound miter saw (with free stand) and an 8-piece DeWalt 20 volt tool kit (drill, impact driver, 6 1⁄2” circular saw, oscillating saw, 4 1⁄2” grinder, flashlight and Sawzall) for our program. Mr. Asaro asks that other development companies follow his lead to support our students and [...]

Most builders use factory-built roof trusses when building homes. But, our students are building our trusses to maximize their learning experience (and to test their knowledge of trigonometry!). Our vaulted, mono trusses look simple, but difficult, small-angle saw cuts are required to build them. To ensure that we build all 44 of them correctly, we sought expert help from Jon Lazarus and Scott Eskridge, the owners of Aloha Lumber & Truss. Jon and Scott were eager to help. They built us a prototype truss that we could use to construct a jig for making the rest of our trusses. And, [...]