Retired Marine offers project designs for teachers

Richard Williams, a former Marine better known as Corporal Willy and woodworker, is spending his retirement creating thought-provoking science and engineering projects for practically nothing — and then providing the designs free to any teacher who would like them in their classrooms.

“I noticed that teachers are continually digging into their own pockets to fund various science projects for their students,” he said in a statement released by Laguna Tools. “I decided to start creating extremely inexpensive, but exciting projects requiring just cardboard, pasta, glue — and that’s it.”

Corporal Willy has built a corrugated cardboard stool that can support up to 1,113 lbs., yet only weighed 9.25 ounces. He also built a Warren Truss bridge that has been displayed at the University of Las Vegas.

“Students love being able to make a perfectly usable stool out of simple corrugated cardboard,” he said. “It makes them think about other cool projects they can make for almost no money.”

Williams maintains a fully stocked woodworking shop in Las Vegas with the latest CNC equipment from Laguna Tools that help him produce precise templates for school projects.

After he has fully tested the projects – including seismic testing for buildings made of cardboard — he creates designs that he offers free to teachers. “That way, they don’t have to keep shelling out their own money for expensive supplies — just cardboard, glue and even Barilla Fettuccini pasta. It’s almost nothing compared to what these dedicated people have been spending that is never talked about.”

When Williams isn’t designing free science projects for teachers, he’s often called upon by the Las Vegas School District to speak before students about the importance of education with the Professional and Youth Building a Commitment group.

“I’m happy to do whatever I can to help stem the dropout rate here in the Vegas area,” said Williams.

For information about obtaining a free science or engineering project design, contact Laguna Tools at www.lagunatools.com.