On The Bench

Description

Thank you for supporting On The Bench, a partnership between Play NC, Bike Durham, and Bull City Woodshop to build and distribute benches to local bus stops that need a place to sit. If you would like to donate money, take a Free class, or take a Paid class, please reference the details below. If you have questions, please ask!

There are three ways for you to support this project:

• Donate Money or Materials
  • If you want to donate any amount of money so we can purchase bench materials, please add the Monetary Donation item to your cart from the dropdown menu above.
  • You will donate $5 for every Monetary Donation item you purchase. To donate more than $5, add more items to your cart.
    • eg. To donate $50, purchase 10 Monetary Donations.
    • To donate $62.50, you can choose the “Half Bench” option.
    • To donate $125, you can choose the “Full Bench” option.
  • For every $125 that we raise through donations, we will add one new opening to a FREE “On the Bench” class at Bull City Woodshop.
  • If you donate lumber, we could use any standard or pressure-treated 2×4, 2×6, or 2×8.
    • Unless we can coordinate delivery immediately before a class, gift cards to lumber yards or Lowes/Home Depot are generally better than donated wood. We can probably use anything with enough time, though!
• Take a FREE “On the Bench” class at Bull City Woodshop
  • Sign up for free classes at BCW, where qualified instructors will teach you how to make this bench.
  • You will make a bench, sign your name, and we will place that bench out into the world for people to sit on while waiting for the bus.
  • We can host free classes once we receive enough donated money or materials to host a free class, so these may be more infrequent.
  • CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR A FREE CLASS AT BCW!
• Take a PAID “On the Bench” class at Bull City Woodshop
  • Same as the Free classes, but you will get to keep the bench you make for yourself.
  • The $250 price for the class will pay for two benches, your bench plus a donated bench, so you will also fund a spot for someone else to build a bus stop bench at one of the Free classes above.
  • CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR A $250 PRIVATE BENCH CLASS AT BCW!

As of March 15, 2026, we have 6 benches out “in the wild” around Durham. We are hoping to double that number at our first FREE BCW Class on May 2, 2026, so please check back soon as we update our map and start to expand at bus stops all over the city!