The amazing wood kid

By Rob Golub

Sunday, March 20, 2005 2:08 AM CST

RACINE - Give Nick Roy, 15, some wood. Stand back. Results follow.

After you visit the blinds, bathrooms and builders at the Home Expo today, you'll find teenage entrepreneur Nick Roy in the basement of Memorial Hall.

He's selling his labor of love. He's selling yet more stuff he's made out of wood.

What's interesting about his carpentry is that he picked it up with absolutely no training whatsoever. No books on carpentry. No home repair TV watching. He just made it all up.

It all started when, one day, he asked his dad to build him skateboard ramps in their Racine backyard. When dad said he didn't know if he had the time, Nick asked dad if he could at least have the wood. Much to everyone's surprise, Nick then went ahead and built a small skateboard park.

That was sixth grade.

Now, as a freshman at Case High School, Nick finds he's the expert. "We're learning how to make boxes now in shop class so I'm a little ahead," he admitted.

Nick's father, Charles Roy, 42, gave his son some space in front of his Memorial Hall booth, CCC & W Deck Cleaning & Power Washing. Nick displays smooth, professional-looking and hand-made wooden boxes at a small table at the front of the booth.

Nick sold a $45 box Saturday, his first-ever sale. "It feels great," he said.

"At first I wanted to be an architect and then I found out I wouldn't be able to build stuff so I decided I want to be a carpenter," he said. "I want to start my own carpentry business. When I grow old that's what I would like to do in life."

Why wait? Nick wants to start up his business now, at age 15. Forget boxes. Next, he wants to try building and selling cabinets and entertainment centers.

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