Four years ago, a man named Pat walked into NZWindows Tauranga with a simple yet heartfelt idea. He wanted to repurpose our timber offcuts into rustic chopping boards. Fast forward to today, and what started as a humble project has grown into something remarkable.

Pat has crafted over 2,300 chopping boards, each one a labour of love and a special gift to charity volunteers in the Bay of Plenty. Through his generosity, Pat has spread joy to hundreds of local volunteers!

As sustainability remains a key priority for NZWindows, our Sustainability Manager, Tash, recently visited Pat’s workshop to learn more about his inspiring work. Not only is Pat giving back to the community, but he’s also breathing new life into our timber offcuts, ensuring they don’t go to waste.

How did Pat get started?

Pat’s journey into woodwork began during the pandemic. As a retired mechanic, Pat has many hands-on skills, but with more time on his hands during lockdown, he decided to try something new. His goal was simple: to stay busy, explore a creative hobby, and find a way to repurpose wood into something special. What began as a small experiment soon blossomed into a passion project that has now made a lasting impact in the local community.

The craft behind the chopping boards

Pat collects timber from NZWindows and other local businesses, starting with the task of de-nailing and preparing the wood. From there, he saws, sizes, and glues the pieces together, carefully sanding them afterwards, with each one taking around 10 hours to make!

Supporting Local Charities

Pat has made it his mission to gift his chopping boards to volunteers at local charities, such as the Red Cross, Salvation Army, and St John’s, as a token of appreciation for the selfless work they do.

NZWindows is proud to collaborate with Pat in bringing joy to local charities and celebrating the spirit of giving back.