ATC students help with elder's day of caring

November 25th 5:12 pm | Lorna Ellis    

Alaska Technical Center students in the Construction Trades Technology program joined the community in helping elders weatherize their homes recently in Kotzebue. They also helped with routine maintenance issues like changing light bulbs and smoke detector batteries. The students really enjoyed helping the elders and learned a lot as well.

Under the supervision of their instructor, Andrew Bunker, students were able to get hands-on experience in the community. Bunker and the students all report that they had a fun time.

Victor Brantley thought "it was fun helping the elders in need. It was a good experience and something I had never done before."

"I liked meeting new people and talking with them. It was fun knowing you're helping out and learning at the same time. We were just beginning our training," said Joseph Harris.

Students were only in their second week of training in the carpentry module and were able to see why the training was important.

"I liked the hands-on experience," Clement Downey said. "We got to put insulation in the receptacles and replaced any broken receptacles."

"It was fun to get out and put the guys' skills to use, put back into the community, and help the elders," said Bunker. "It gave me a chance to see how the students interacted with each other and worked together as a team. I could see the students taking the knowledge and skills they had learned and put them to use in a residential environment."

The project was a success and four elders' homes were worked on by the ATC crew.

The Elder's Day of Caring came about from the efforts of the Community Energy Task Force Committee , which is made up of Kotzebue community leaders. The committee met numerous times over the last three years to figure out ways to help alleviate the ongoing energy crisis. In particular, the committee has focused its efforts on helping elders by addressing energy inefficiencies in the homes.

The committee has designed simple weatherization action kits for each elder home. These effective actions include caulking and installing weather strips for exterior doors, inserting foam in holes in walls, installing insulating covers over the windows, installing insulation in outlets and lightswitches, and installing fire/carbon monoxide detectors. Each home will also receive simple fix-it needs that elders may have, which is a very welcomed aide that the elders are very thankful for and saves them money.

Bunker said he would like to encourage more community projects where the students can get involved, help the community, and obtain more hands-on experience.

"These students are learning great skills that will help provide vital support for the community, their families, and their own futures. This is what I enjoy the most about teaching this class," he said.

In talking with Bunker and the students, one could feel their excitement at having been allowed to be a part of this project. They said it was nice to see where the book work was going to help them to understand why something should be done a certain way.

Margaret Hansen said, "Without the community organizations and volunteers, we could not have made this a reality. We appreciate all the efforts of those who volunteered, like the ATC Construction Trades Technology program and the Kotzebue Middle High School Woodshop students, that helped to make this a success for our elders and the community. Thank you students. We really appreciate you."

In the future, it will be nice to see how these young men develop their talents, skills, and knowledge. If you see them around town or in your village, please give them encouragement and a pat on the back. Maybe one day they can help you too.

Lorna Ellis is an Office Occupations Instructor with the Alaska Technical Center in Kotzebue.

 

---

Contact us about this article at editor@thearcticsounder.com