Hank Welzel looks at a pile of waste lumber from a different perspective. “We waste too much in this country,” he says. “We always have.”

His face cracks with a nearly perpetual smile as he talks, his blue eyes offering a playful twinkle.

Born in Ohio in 1926 of German immigrant parents, he spent more than a decade in Europe during World War II. He and his wife, Gloria, were married in 1951, “sixty-plus wonderful years,” he offered in summary. The parents of three sons and two daughters, the couple “retired” to Maine in 1980, and Hank built his house and shop.

He speaks of his shop with a certain reverence. Alone with his tools, his woods and his imagination, he spends his days making benches, bird houses, saw horses and other accessories.

He speaks in pride-filled tones when he points at a stack of benches and reminds us there is not one stick of wood in those benches that he purchased. “I go to jobsites, I go to the landfill, you’d be amazed what I find and bring home to use.”

The People Plus Center has long been a willing beneficiary of Welzel’s craft. He built the pine bench in the front lobby, the four planter boxes on the ramped entrance, and custom-constructed a ramp for loading vans, when he heard we were having difficulties. For a number of years, he sold his custom benches at the Crystal Spring Farmer’s Market and gave the proceeds to the center.

Last year, he was named Volunteer of the Year for the Brunswick Teen Center. Last week, he delivered a “super-raised” raised-bed garden that will let members garden without bending over.

“That is pretty amazing,” program coordinator Rebecca Banks said. “We showed Hank an idea with a picture and he called us in a week and told us to come and get it, the frame was ready.”

Welzel summarizes his life by saying it’s important to “adapt to anything.”

He took a childhood interest in chemistry and built it to what he describes as a mastery of the fiberglass and resin craft. He has built full-sized models of jet engines in fiberglass, made the first Lincoln fiberglass canoe in the 1960s, designed speaker systems for the Bose Corp., built exhibits for two World’s Fairs and has created hundreds of working models and prototypes.

“I made a full-sized replica of Plymouth Rock once,” he said, “and shipped it to Hawaii for an exhibit. It’s important to stay interested in and excited about whatever you’re doing.”

The People Plus Center would not be what is today without our members and tireless volunteers. Hank Welzel always has a smile, a bag of food for the teens and an idea for something we need.