Have you ever had an itch to tackle some of those at-home projects, but wonder if you have the skills?
A new program offered by the Minnesota Tool Library called “Tools for Life” might be just for you. And it’s free.
Aimed at both those who simply want to improve their “trade” skills and those who are interested in a career in the building trades, the program will begin the week of March 18 and go on for 12 weeks.
“Most mentorship programs like this are aimed at young men, but we are aiming at lots of different folks, all ages, all levels of experience, women, people of color,” said Linnea Henrikson, a program coordinator at the Minnesota Tool Library.
“The program can give you an overview of what a skill looks like, whether it’s for your own home improvement or if you’re looking for a trade skill you might want to pursue further.”
In addition to the skills learned, the participant will also get a one-year membership to the Tool Library and its thousands of tools. A membership usually costs $250. And, participants will receive an OSHA 10 certificate.
The program will run until May 9. Core instructional hours are on Thursdays and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will also be limited alternate and optional class hours in the evenings or weekends for those who can’t attend all the Thursday-Friday meetings.
Participants will be expected to engage in 12-16 hours of programming per week. In addition to the six hours of instruction, there will also be one to two hours of e-learning, three hours of service and two-plus hours of flex activities.
Students can apply by going to www.mn
toollibrary.org/tools-life.
The MN Tool Library has two locations. In Northeast Minneapolis, it is located in the Thorp Building, Suite 126, at 1620 Central Ave. In St. Paul, it is located at 1010 Dale Street in the alley.
The Tools for Life program is offered at the St. Paul branch.
The number for the Minneapolis location is 612-440-8665. In St. Paul, it’s 651-383-7082. The website is at www.mn
toollibrary.org. Both sites have hours from Tuesday through the weekend.
The lending library has over 5,000 tools that can be checked out for seven days. Workshop space is available and contains larger tools like table saws, jointers and lathes.
In addition to the Tools for Life program, other classes coming up include toilet repair, learning the wood router, oil changes, sewing and learning the scroll saw.
“We have one-off classes for doing specific projects,” Henrikson said. “These might include plumbing, painting, drywalling and more.”
Henrikson said the hours are flexible “to be open at times when you’re in the project mode.”
The Tools for Life program is free because of a grant from State Farm.