Classroom For A Day

07/14/2005

BY MICHAEL-ALLAN MARION
EXPOSITOR STAFF / BRANTFORD

YM-YWCA’s new home to be used Saturday to teach children about construction careers.

Workers construction the transitional YM-YWCA at Wellington and Clarence streets will find themselves with a lot of small helpers on Saturday in a special event called A Day in the Life of Construction.

Mounted jointly by the Y, King & Benton Redevelopment Corp. and Big Brothers of Brantford and District, the event, from 10 a.m. to noon, is an opportunity to introduce children to the realities of construction sites and demonstrate the value of skilled trades.

Owner King & Benton and Lanca Construction are in the process of transforming the Work Wear property across from the fire hall into the Y’s centre of operations for the next few years, until a permanent home on Market Street South near Earl Haig Park is built.

The idea for the event began when Big Brothers asked King & Benton president Steve Charest to participate in one of their monthly special events in May, said Colleen Armstrong, the company’s project co-ordinator.

While driving some little Brothers around the downtown in his Hummer, she said it occurred to Charest that the Y project offered an opportunity for another educational event.

Kids could get an upclose, supervised look at the creation of a place they will later use, and learn a lot in the process.

“This is a great opportunity to introduce the youth in our community to the career opportunities open to hem in the development and redevelopment industries,” said Armstrong.

“This is the ideal project to demonstrate what can be achieved on a construction site where we are creating a place for kids and families.”

Armstrong also said children and their parents from the surrounding community are also welcome to join.

She noted the 2003 Skilled Trades Survey by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce identified raising the awareness and career image of skilled trades as an essential element in combating labour shortages in the construction industry.

Dave Wrobel, a city councillor and a trades instructor at Mohawk College, was excited at the invitation to join.

“I’m bringing my hardhat,” said the former contractor. “It’s been a while since I wore it.”

He will explain how to move from elementary and high school into a skilled trade.

MEANINGFUL CAREERS

“With the construction boom we have going on around here, it’s important what we introduce young people to meaningful careers.”

When those little Brothers and others arrive on Saturday, they will be handed hardhats by Charest and taken through short seminars and demonstrations by skilled trades people and environmental experts.

For instance, in one session called We Have a Problem, they will learn a little about the environmental realities of brownfield sites, and draw water from test wells and test the water, with the help of Dillon Consulting.

In We Need a Plan, they will review architectural drawings with an expert from J.H. Cohoon Engineering. They will also learn how welders join steel in the building’s structure and what it takes to be apprentice.

“We are excited that our new site is already being used as a centre for the community,” said the Y’s CEO, Nancy Romanenko.

“It’s a place where all ages can learn and grow to become future Y community builders.”