Some area teenagers have been getting some hands-on training in welding at Danville Area Community College. Instructor R. J. Rowling says the class will hopefully help spark some careers…
{”I mean I get calls all the time about some of the local businesses that are needing welders and they can’t find them,” said Rowling. ”So, you know, it’s good to get – at a young age – get them in here and get them to start thinking about their future. Is is something they’d like to do – or not.”
Fourteen-year-old Grace Conklin from Danville tells us what the class has been doing…
{”We’ve been welding dice. We’ve been welding fire pits, learning how to stick weld and mig weld – and it’s a ton of fun,” said Conklin. (When asked by Neuhoff Media Danville News Director Bill Pickett how she got interested in welding, Conklin said,) ”I’ve been doing this sort of thing since I was little. My grandpa started me on it when I was like four or five. So this is one of the things that interests me,” she added.
(One of the fire pits that was made sits on its side in the welding lab.)
All of the kids in the class range in age from 13 to 18.
And if you think you might be interested in becoming a welder, Conklin has this advice….
{”Just go for it! It’s a lot of fun and it’s easy once you get into it.”]
State Senator Scott Bennett decided to stop by the class….
{”Well it’s great to see, first of all, them work with their hands and putting all their energy to good use,” said Bennett. ”But in terms of like trying to figure out the future of the area – every month I’m in meetings that talk about hey, there’s truck driving jobs and there’s welding jobs that we can not fill because people don’t have the training. So to see young people come here, and get a couple weeks to get their hands dirty, and to see if this is right for them and learn a new skill is really encouraging,” added Senator Bennett.
The class was offered as part of the ‘College for Kids’ program at Danville Area Community College.
