On Thursday, October 3, Kankakee Valley Rural Electric Membership Corporation (REMC) hosted its second annual Trades Camp event at its Wanatah branch. Even though this is only the second year that Kankakee Valley REMC has presented Trades Camp, interest in the event has spread far and wide. Sixty-five juniors and seniors from over 10 high schools in the surrounding area were in attendance, some driving from as far as Rensselaer, Argos, and DeMotte.
During the morning portion of the event, professionals from nine different trades described their jobs to the students and outlined what a day in their life is like for them. Representatives from Road Sprinkler Fitters Local 669, Northwest Indiana Plumbers Local 210, Chicago Pipefitters Local 597, Indiana Electric Cooperatives, and Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Local 4 Indiana/Kentucky (BAC4IN/KY) were among the presenters.
Several Kankakee Valley REMC linemen gave a live demonstration of how power lines and transformers light up street lamps on Kankakee Valley REMC’s mobile and fully operational, life-sized circuit. The linemen also showed the students the equipment and protective wear they use on the job and even let the students practice using the tools on life-sized powerline models.
David “Dave” Howell, facilities manager at Kankakee Valley REMC, believes that Trades Day offers something for every student, no matter their planned career path.
“It’s rewarding to see the good that comes from this event,” Howell said. “We’ve met all kinds of kids here. Some are eager to start working as soon as they graduate and even bring their resumes to hand out to the presenters. Others aren’t really sure what they want to do once they graduate. Some don’t even seem to know what the trades are. This program shows all the kids what job options are available to them. Many kids these days are told ‘You don’t have any other choice but to go to college.’ That isn’t necessarily the case for everyone, though. Hopefully, when they leave here today, they can tell their parents about alternative career paths in the trades that will still enable them to make a good living.”
The presenters from Midwest Independent Electrical Contractors (IEC) held a competition to see which student could correctly attach wires to an electrical outlet, while a representative from International Union of Operating Engineers-Local 150 Apprenticeship let students try their hand at an excavator operation simulator.
Amanda Steeb, director of marketing communications at Kankakee Valley REMC, feels that Trades Day reflects Kankakee Valley REMC’s values.
“Most of the activities that Dave and I are involved with are centered around youth, like the Kankakee Valley REMC Junior Board of Directors program,” Steeb said. “We both have a passion for offering students new and different opportunities. Kankakee Valley REMC focuses on working with the youth in our community, so Trades Camp is a perfect event for us to offer. We open this event up to the entire community so kids from beyond the boundaries of our electric cooperative are able to benefit from it. Along with learning about occupations they may have never heard of before, they also get to learn what an electric cooperative is. Planning and executing Trades Camp is a lot of work, but it is well worth the effort.”
The presenters from Central Midwest Carpenters Union showed the students how to assemble a wooden pallet, supervising the students as they cut and measured the wood and screwed the pieces together.
Logan Hillers, senior at North Judson-San Pierre High School, appreciates the fact that Trades Day offers him and his peers some alternative post-high school paths.
“Some kids, like me, don’t feel that college is the right choice for them,” Hillers said. “I think that doing a trade apprenticeship would suit me better. Personally, I think more people should start attending trade schools and doing apprenticeships. It’s been great to learn about all of these trades first-hand here today instead of just reading about them.”
While Oliver Ball, senior at North Judson-San Pierre High School, was pleased to learn about employment options in the trades, he felt that Trades Day offered other kinds of learning opportunities as well.
“I believe that this is a great community event because it educates people about the jobs that play essential roles in our day-to-day lives,” Ball said. “For instance, linemen maintain the power lines so we can run electricity into our homes. Electricians make it possible for us to harness that electricity for our appliances and devices while plumbers make sure that we have the water we need in our homes. I hope everyone here today has enjoyed participating in this great learning opportunity.”
Please visit kvremc.com to learn more about the services and programs that Kankakee Valley REMC offers.
