Serve & Turn
Veteran Woodturning Program
What is Serve & Turn
Serve & Turn is a woodworking program designed to provide veterans & First-responders with a therapeutic outlook on thephysical, emotional, and cognitive challenges woodturning brings forth.The therapeutic outlook provides a meaningful twist to hands on creation and can create a meditative like environment, safe and healing.Participants will use this experience to create their own artwork, develop coping skills, reduce stress, and improve self-esteem. The program is offered in a group setting that allows for social interaction and an establishment of a small community over-time. While we also offer one-to-one therapeutic experiences with participants. Overall, the experience of Serve & Turn helps adapt mindsets as we work with the grain, in turn, helping support veterans with a grasp on feeling home again and having apurpose. Emphasizing the veterans need for personal growth and community.
Population Served
Veterans & First-Responders who battle Post-traumatic stress (PTS) and/or Traumatic Brain injury (TBI).
More In-depth:
Serve & Turn is tailored to Veterans of the United States Military and First-responders. Although we will allow
all veterans & First-responders, our program is focused on tailoring our efforts to those with service-
related injuries. Although, not an exhaustive list, Those injuries can include: post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), military sexual trauma (MST), Spinal Cord
injury (SCI), and Loss of limb. 20% of veterans report PTSD alone, not including those who do
not report it (Department of Veteran Affairs, 2021). With these injuries Veterans come from
various backgrounds, ranging widely between age (ie. World War 2 Veterans or 20-year-olds),
gender, race, and specific up-bringing which can also impact how they handle their service
related injuries. In turn, some coping mechanisms that are already in place may include
substance abuse (Wounded Warrior Project, 2023).
Serve & Turn is geared to help this population by creating a safe and supportive place
to learn and heal in healthy ways. In turn, meeting physical, social, and cognitive needs with
and without adaptations. Creating a rich environment to learn new skills and hobbies, in
hopes to help veterans not only find a new purpose in life, to also help them find new healing
methods.
How It's Run
Participants can participate in either one-on-one or a 5-week group session. Whether in the one-on-one or group session, participants will learn the basics of woodturning, through the aspects of projects like Pen making and Bowl or cup turning.
More in depth:
Group Serve & Turn
The group Serve & Turn program consists of 5 sessions, held once per week, each session
lasting 60–120 minutes: the last session being the longest. This schedule allows participants
to make meaningful progress on a project while balancing their external commitments. As
well as allowing to take time to keep safe and reflect on specific activities done or
overviewed in each session.
Description of Staff
One or more Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialists (CTRS) will staff the serve &
Turn program, size dependent. There will always be one staff member or volunteer who knows and is experienced in
woodturning to facilitate. Serve & Turn will also have guest instructors for special sessions.
Serve & Turn also allows for one or two prior participant(s) to assist with future Serve & Turn the programing, allowing for peer
support; assisting in positive social interaction, breaking the ice, and safety monitoring.
Serve & Turn CTRS staff will be CPR/First Aid trained and knowledgeable on the
equipment and safety needs. The CTRS also fall under the New Jersey State Regulations
for CTRS requirements.
Facilities
Serve & Turn is currently hosted at various woodworking shops in the local area. As well as, one-on-one session when not hosting at a local shop.
**NJAR is currently working to break ground on a shop. When built, the NJAR Serve & Turn woodshop will be an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible facility.
Program Evaluation(s)
Staff Program Evaluation
Our staff program evaluation is to ensure the Serve & Turn program meets its intended goals, objectives, and outcomes using both formative and summative evaluation methods. Therefore, the designated program evaluation is simplified form, allowing for directness and ease of use. This form allows staff members to have direct answers as well as reflections. This helps staff know what went well, did not go well, effectiveness, and things to adjust. That information can then be used to make the program better; whether that be the next session or next go around for the program. It also helps having the narrative form as staff can note things overlooked and can help for future overall planning (even the small stuff). The Post-Session Evaluation report can be filled out after each session to keep as much detail in the report. There will also be a filling out of the form for the overall program on the last day in addition to the individual session form. Click to see example
Program Outcomes & Goals
Overall Goals of Serve & turn
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Enhance Mental Welfare
-
Establish and develop Skills
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Educate and bring awareness to adaptive recreation (if needing adaptations)
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Establish community for participants (if in group setting)
Outcome 1:
To demonstrate increased self-awareness
Goals:
EO 1.1 - To demonstrate knowledge of emotional regulation if or when
a need arises in woodworking
EO 1.2 - To demonstrate an increase in mood or positive affect from
woodworking participation
EO 1.3 - To demonstrate participants ability to notice themselves within
their surroundings.
Outcome 2:
To demonstrate knowledge of woodturning
Goals:
EO 2.1 - To demonstrate completion of a woodturning project.
EO 2.2 - To demonstrate progress on a skill/ability within wood turning a
pen.
EO 2.3 - To demonstrate a personal success while participating in
woodturning.4
Outcome 3:
To demonstrate appropriate social interaction
Goals:
EO 3.1 - To demonstrate engagement with peers during shared work
time or group discussion
EO 3.2 - To demonstrate the participant has interacted with peers
throughout Serve & Turn by providing peer feedback on projects
at the end of the session.
EO 3.3 - To demonstrate ability to reflect on their own experience in a
peer setting.