A group of five dedicated seniors from The Morgan School are in the final stages of constructing an 18-foot wooden skiff to be raffled off in June to raise funds for the school’s Class of 2015 Project Graduation event.

Almost every Sunday since November, a small garage on a quiet Clinton neighborhood street has transformed into the boat’s workshop. On fair-weather days, students roll the boat out into the driveway to work on it. The students get together for about two hours each week.

“We just wanted to help out the Class,” said Maxx Bugg, a senior at Morgan. “I’ve learned a lot about problem solving…and how important it is to measure, and re-measure.”

The boat’s construction is based on the Brockway skiff, a classic utility boat design often used for recreation, fishing, and lobstering.

The group is led by David Thompson, who has been an avid boater most of his life, and is the father of another team member, Kelly Thompson, also a senior at Morgan.

“They are a great group of kids to work with who have come a long way in learning to work with tools and boat building,” said Thompson. “They are extremely responsible and are very committed to the project—the boat could not have been built without them.”

Thompson has donated all the materials in addition to his expertise. This is his fifth wooden boat build. Its predecessor was a similar skiff, built in the same garage by a group of Morgan School seniors in 2013 to benefit Thompson’s oldest daughter’s Project Graduation.

When completed, the vessel will weigh approximately 750 pounds and will have a capacity of six adults. It may be powered by a motor of up to 50 horsepower (not included). The boat does not come with a trailer.

The team has decided the boat will be painted blue with white trim—The Morgan School colors—and be adorned with an emblem of the Husky dog, the school’s mascot. The boat is scheduled for completion at the end of May, and the raffle is slated to be held mid- to late June.

Raffle tickets are available for $10 each. Tickets will be available for purchase on Saturday, April 25 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. during The Project Graduation Tag Sale at The Morgan School in Clinton or by emailing boatraffle2015@gmail.com.