Pablo Cambron-Valdez
2021-11-02T14:31:52-07:00Phone:
Email:
Pablo Cambron-Valdez - Bio
Pablo Cambron-Valdez has been interested in art and sculpture since childhood. He would often make figurines out of clay his mom brought home from work or attempt origami from scraps of paper. But when he took his first Glass Blowing class the summer before high school—a gift he received for getting good grades—he knew it was something special. "I really got mesmerized by the process of glass and how it moves. There is a real satisfaction working with glass. The fact that everything has to be fluid but controlled is very intriguing to me," he explained.
Throughout his early years of high school, Pablo continued taking Crucible classes—sixteen total, the majority in glass. When he was old enough, Pablo joined our Fuego Youth Leadership Program and Pre-Apprentice Program, which helped prepare him to become a member of our faculty. Pablo joined The Crucible faculty in 2019, one of the dozens of students who grew up taking classes at The Crucible to become a faculty member. “I can relate to my students because I can step back into their shoes and remember how I was scared at certain points. If my students get spooked I say, ‘Look at me and take a deep breath. You’re here, I’m here, and we’re gonna get this done. I’m here to help you out.’
Erick Kneer
2017-03-03T18:17:01-08:00Department(s):
Phone: (510) 444-0919
Email:
Erick Kneer - Bio
Abdollah Hamdan
2019-01-08T11:54:46-08:00Phone:
Email: abdollahhamdan@gmail.com
Abdollah Hamdan - Bio
“I feel like I’ve accomplished a lot,” said Abdollah, who started taking classes at The Crucible when he was twelve. “The Crucible has given me experience. I can go do whatever I want now, because I know what to do.”
David Weisbach
2019-07-18T17:48:29-07:00Phone:
Email: daweisbach@gmail.com
David Weisbach - Bio
Hi All,
My name is Dave Weisbach. I grew up in Southern California, northwest of Los Angeles. Growing up, I always worked with my hands. I got my first job as a bicycle builder at age 14 when I crashed my bicycle, broke my arm, and destroyed the frame, while en route to my best friend’s house to watch the Super Bowl. My mom had the foresight to ask the owner of the bicycle shop where I purchased the bike if I could work off the cost of the replacement parts. I was hired on as a bicycle builder and paid $5 cash for each bike I assembled.
From there, I worked as a bicycle mechanic at another shop, a pizza delivery boy / cook, and worked through college as an auto mechanic, and later as a mechanical engineer / machinist. I moved to Davis, CA for grad school, also in mechanical engineering, and while there began working at Tesla motors as a quality engineer / manufacturing engineer. After Tesla, I briefly worked as a manufacturing engineer at SpaceX, before returning to the bay to work as a hardware engineer at a Biotech start-up in Emeryville, where I currently work full-time.
Outside of work, I enjoy hiking, climbing, bicycling, backpacking & car/ motorcycle camping, woodworking, paddleboarding, and traveling. I’ve been to about 35 states and 6 other countries.
I’ve been welding, on and off, for about 10 years. I have experience MIG and TIG welding, and have TIG welded steel, stainless, aluminum, and titanium, as well as oxy-acetylene cut and brazed. I also have quite a bit of experience, and greatly enjoy, manual and CNC machining, sheet metal working, and general fabrication.
I look forward to working with, and getting to know everyone at the Crucible, and am excited to be a part of the community it has created and very excited to return to education!