PTEC welding students help bring 9/11 monument to fruition

This story is a big deal for me in that I am currently a PTEC welding student and that I may in the future be involved in such projects. It hits close to home in more ways than one, obviously, and it gives me an excited hope for my future as a welder.

I often feel as though people, my own family included, might look down upon my going into a “manual labor” sort of profession as opposed to continuing college for who knows how long to get a degree in I don’t care what all for the sake of being an intelligent, “well-rounded” person. Well you know what? I believe life is what you make of it. I absolutely love what I’m going to school for, and I won’t be doing the two steps forward, ten back approach to education that consists of ten years in school with the rest of your life paying it off in misery.

I love the immediate results welding yields; the satisfaction that follows a good bead. I admire my instructors for their vast experience in the field as well as their patience with us and all our faults. I adore the guys I work with and the amount of respect and equality they show me despite being the only female in a predominately male-centric class. I’m very happy with what I’ve chosen for myself in terms of an occupation, and that’s half the battle right there.

I’m not exactly sure where I was going with this, except that I was elated to see a real-world example of what I’m doing right here in my hometown. It’s a really terrific feeling, something I’d like to get used to.