By Scott Mitchell Johnson
Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE — While carpentry, auto repair, plumbing/heating and welding may be thought of as “men’s work,” Women, Work, and Community is doing its part to change that way of thinking.
The 10th annual Totally Trades Conference, a daylong event designed to encourage girls to consider careers traditionally dominated by men, was held April 24 at Northern Maine Community College.
“I don’t think when this first started that I would have projected it lasting 10 years due to the uncertainty of funding, but I’m glad it has sustained,” said Suzanne Senechal-Jandreau, conference planner and regional manager of the central Aroostook office of Women, Work and Community, a statewide organization committed to helping Maine people succeed in their workplace, business and community. “The first year we held the conference we had about 45 girls participate; today we have 125, so there’s been significant growth.
“We’ve tried different things over the years — shorter sessions, longer sessions, as well as different topics, but overall the structure has remained pretty much the same,” she said. “We want to give young women a hands-on workshop experience to spark their interest and raise awareness about some potentially high opportunity and high wage career fields that they may not have previously considered.”
Among the more popular workshops include carpentry, where the girls can build their own toolbox, heavy equipment operation and welding.
The free conference is for Aroostook County girls in grades 8 through 12.
Chelsea Winiarski, 15, a sophomore at East Grand School, and Kim Stoddard, 15, an East Grand freshman, both agreed the event was a worthwhile experience.
“This was my first Totally Trades conference,” said Winiarski. “I wanted to come last year but there were too many other girls going, so I couldn’t. I like to be able to experience new things. We’re going to do heavy equipment operation, and earlier we got to solder things together and cut pipes and I don’t get to do that every day. I’m not sure what I want to do for a career so I’m trying to open myself up to everything. Something like this conference helps open your eyes to what’s out there.”
“Having something like Totally Trades gives us background and a better understanding of what’s out there,” Stoddard said. “I like working with my hands. I like big rigs so I may do something with engineering as a career. This has been a positive experience and I’m glad I came.”
Funding for the activity is made possible through monies and in-kind services provided by the Maine Department of Transportation, Maine Department of Education/CTE, and Time Warner Cable of Maine. Local monetary sponsors include Northern Maine Development Commission, attorney Sarah LeClaire, K-PEL Industrial Services, McCain Foods USA, S.W. Collins Inc., Cassidy Orthodontics and Soderberg Construction Co., Inc.
Senechal-Jandreau said the students truly enjoy the hands-on component of the day.
“Whenever the girls have a chance to try something out and actually use their hands and make something then it’s a very experiential learning opportunity for them,” she said, “and I think that’s what keeps them coming back. Provided the funding is there, we’ll continue the program again next year. It has proven itself to be very beneficial to area girls.”
