By Joshua Imhof
news editor | imhofj@duq.edu

In 1964, United States Army Veteran Mike Reyna was resupplying troops at a base in Germany.

During his time in the military, he picked up hands-on skills like playing guitar. Now, he likes to spend his time woodworking, painting and on Sunday, glass working.

“I have a lot of things I did, but I’ll be 80 in a few months. I can still do this,” he said. “My ex-wife says I’m too old, but I don’t think so.”

On Sunday, Reyna and other military veterans participated in Pittsburgh Glass Center’s Veteran’s Day Open House. The studio offered a free class that taught patrons how to make fused glass sun catchers, square panels of colorful glass that hang in windows and reflect light.

Elie Durham-Britton, part-time instructor at the Pittsburgh Glass Center, said open houses are a great way for all skill levels to get introduced to glass work.

“These kinds of events make it really accessible to all sorts of different people,” she said. “They have an even playing field.”

Durham-Britton began her career five years ago after taking a class on stained glass when she said she “fell down the rabbit hole” and wanted to learn more about the art. She enjoyed the creative element to it, and how you could go “from scratch to instructor.”

Now, she passes on that knowledge to other people.

“I actually really love teaching the people that have never done anything like this before because they’re just so excited to learn,” she said.

Justin Baker, who served in the U.S. Army from 2021-2026, worked in front of screens on air defense. Since leaving the military, he has sometimes turned to these types of activities to relax.

“I kind of just turn my brain off for 20 to 30 minutes,” Baker said. “Getting away from that stuff has been nice. Just being outside and doing stuff with my hands, it’s a nice break from all of that.”

Baker was creating a picture of Mount Rainier on his sun catcher to pay homage to his home state of Washington. He said he misses the mountains now that he is on the East Coast.

For his first Veteran’s Day, he reflected on what it means to those who have served.

“For a lot of those guys, for some of the people who never made it back, it’s about living your life to the fullest,” he said.

Reyna said this was his first time taking advantage of veterans’ discounts or perks, other than when he uses the Veteran’s Association.

“I hear people talking about how the VA doesn’t help them, and I’m shocked at that,” he said. “I’m a nobody soldier. I didn’t do anything special. I never went to combat. Every time I leave, the first thing they say is, ‘Thank you for your service.’”

Although he is proud of his time in the service, he said he felt like other veterans could use the benefits offered around Veteran’s Day more.

“I’ve never been rich by any means, but I’ve never not been able to feed myself. There’s a lot of them that are on the street, and I’m not,” he said. “But I figured this year, I’m gonna get me a free meal and a haircut.”

Pittsburgh Glass Center offers free open houses on the first Friday of every month. They will be hosting their Winter Solstice Make-It-Now event Dec. 19 where attendees can make their own candle holders and sun catchers.