GRIDLEY, CA (MPG) – Jack Waller is a great kid. It is not surprising that he has taken it upon himself to build something out of his boredom.

Recently, Waller began to revisit the family garage, an area he spent a lot of time in with his late Grandfather. Hours of tinkering with wood, tools, and outdoors with Grandpa in his early years may have been behind the sudden new interest in carpentry. His mother, Jeanna Winters, says that in the last month or so, her son’s projects have really taken off.

Confident and animated, Waller explains that he has been building pieces, working outdoors, and more to earn money to buy more tools for his workshop. His most recent acquisition was a miter saw, which opened the door to even more wood crafts. He predominantly uses pallet wood for his pieces, but when a Facebook post caught the attention of a local business, Waller was the lucky recipient of some donated wood from Travis Byers at Goforth Molding. “I was floored,” said mother Jeanna Winters, “you just don’t see that nowadays” of the quality and amount of wood they donated to her son.

Waller is now accepting commissions and creating tables, benches, wall décor, hearts and more with his tools. Waller says his mom and grandmother help him with craft ideas that will attract buyers and occasionally with production. He stains the wood as well, with steel wool, and utilizes other techniques for variety in his pieces. He displays his finished works for sale out on his driveway.

Waller says, “I would like to start more of a business, and just start building until I get to that. And then, just grow and grow.”  He also wanted to remind everyone, “I just want people to know this is pallet wood – it’s not the best wood… And if you are thinking I’m a pro carpenter, I’m not.”

He might not be a professional carpenter, but Jake Waller’s wood pieces are amazing and his passion for building, his impressive knowledge of tools, and his craft, is whole-heartedly endearing.

At the same time, this 11-year-old, soon to be 12, is realistic, “If this doesn’t work out for me, let’s say, in the future, like with wood prices so high I can’t get any wood… I also know how to do like, electrical and stuff.” Something tells us that won’t be a problem for Jack Waller. Help support this young man and visit his wood shop located on the southwest corner of California and Magnolia Streets, Gridley.