Housing Hub Leads Carpentry Workshop at Mountain TOP
For the second year in a row, our very own Director of Housing Development, Cody Jorstad, has led a carpentry workshop as part of Mountain TOP’s Summer Plus program. Summer Plus is Mountain TOP’s day camp program for local teenagers which gives the youth participants the chance to choose between a few different workshops where they can learn fun and important skills. This year some of the workshops, in addition to Cody’s carpentry session, were sewing, science experiments, personal finance and ukulele. 22 teenagers participated and had a fantastic time all week long. Cody had two groups of 4 participate in his workshop. Over the course of the week, they were able to learn a variety of skills, from how to read a tape measure, to using a miter saw. By the end of the week, each of the two groups built an adirondack chair and a bench!
Leading this workshop has been a really fun experience for Cody and it lines up perfectly with Housing Hub’s workforce development mission. While the main priority is simply having fun and challenging yourself to learn new skills, we know that being exposed to something like this in a safe and positive environment goes a long way in encouraging the next generation to consider construction as a career opportunity. Just seeing this type of work portrayed in a positive light, and feeling the small sense of accomplishment from completing a chair or bench gives the youth that much more confidence in whatever they choose to do next.
It is amazing to watch the youth make progress as a group throughout the week. They begin knowing very little about what they are getting into and hesitant about using some intimidating tools. But once they conquer that fear and prove to themselves that they can do it, they quickly begin taking pride in their work. There is a switch where it changes from everyone being hesitant, to the group figuring out how to work together and share so that everyone gets the chance to use every tool. Some of the youth just like using the tools, while others really take a lot of pride in seeing the finished product come together. No matter what, the exposure is what is important.
This is particularly meaningful for Cody because it was as a 14 year old at Mountain TOP that his journey in construction started. As a shy and nervous participant he got the chance to work as part of a team doing home repair. He learned how to use a circular saw and by the end of the week, he was the official saw man for anything needing to be cut. It is experiences like this that unlock something in each of us and give us the confidence to imagine our futures. How can we continue to give young people exposure to using tools and contributing to a project in a way that feels meaningful to them? How can we make sure we talk about this type of work in a positive and uplighting way?
Stay tuned for future updates about our activities in our workforce development mission pillar!
