Board of Directors

Jay Polk serves as the Treasurer for Adam’s Forge  and is an engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory where he works on advanced rocket propulsion. He built his first forge when he was about 14 and taught himself a few blacksmithing skills (to make knives, of course). He rediscovered his interest in blacksmithing in 2010, and got properly educated in classes at Adam’s Forge. He continues to be fascinated by sharp, pointy things and the fact that if you get metal hot enough, it becomes plastic and can be formed into many cool shapes.

Leonidas Moustakas is the Vice President of the Board. He’s an enthusiastic amateur blacksmith and a formally trained astrophysicist with a PhD from the University of California at Berkeley. He has held professional positions at Oxford University, at Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, and at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he is currently a Scientist.  After moving to Los Angeles in 2005, Leonidas discovered Adam’s Forge in 2007 and forged ahead with Mark Aspery’s Mastering the Fundamentals five-day course which cemented his passion for blacksmithing.  Leonidas is committed to Adam’s Forge’s mission to engage and serve the community through the ancient art of blacksmithing.  Leonidas has served on the Board since 2010.

As for what else I’ve done, I am a writer of novels – my most recent Among the Survivors–, short stories, plays, poems, essays, reviews, advertising, indeed everything but screenplays. I’m also a brilliant marrier, first to H. David Leventhal and after his death to Jon O. Newman.

Zapp has been teaching at Adam’s Forge since 2012. His favorite projects are metal art, bottle openers, letter openers, knives, key fobs, leaf amulets, magic wands, rustic cookware, and custom tools. Sign up for one of Zapp’s classes if you want to explore blacksmithing and metal.