Construction Combine Continues
Students from Soda Springs were among the schools who attended the Combine in Pocatello last week.
This year’s Construction Combine was a little different than in past years. For one thing, the Combine is no longer directly connected to the CEWT program at Idaho State University. As a result of funding and allocation issues that are affecting many aspects of life these days, some aspects of the project have changed. Annie Harrison-Quinton and Steve Quinton, who have been part of the Combine for many years, are now the primary organizers.
Home Depot it still involved in a major way, and provided both the location as well as many of the materials used in the construction of sheds for veterans, which is ultimately the practical outcome of the event. Local contractors and businesses are also still involved in a big way, with Nathan Broadhead of Amerititle one of the many on hand last week. “It’s so good to get kids introduced to the trades,” Broadhead said. “It shows them where they can go in that direction.”
Students from Soda Springs High School were among those that spent the first day of the Combine meeting local contractors, and learning some of the skills involved in putting together a finished shed. Driving skid steers, using nailguns, roofing basics and more occupied the instruction.
Steve Quinton, Annie Harrison-Quinton, Nathan Broadhead, and Dave Pristupa.
According to Annie Harrison-Quinton the program has an extremely high job placement rate, and gives students a great chance to network with local businesses they may not have initially thought of contacting.
“If we’ve helped one or two kids, then we’ve succeeded,” she said. “But we’ve helped a lot more than that!” For her, it boils down to four main things, “Community, Contractors, Kids, and Veterans.”
The focus on veterans brings up another thing that hasn’t changed, which is Dave Pristupa, who coordinates the veterans to whom the sheds are given.
Since last year, Pristupa has had his schedule altered a bit as a result of being elected mayor of Grace.
“Luckily, there is no council meeting this week,” he laughed, “or I’d need to leave earlier to get there.”
One other thing that was different this year was the frigid temperatures and high wind. In the past, late April had been almost perfect for outdoor construction. This year, there were a few more warm up trips between. The temps were low enough that several schools, including Soda Springs, did not make the return trip for the second day. Nonetheless, it was still a unquie learning experience.
School is ideally a place where students acquire the skills they will need to make them successful throughout the rest of their lives. While that includes many concepts that can seem abstract at the time—critical thinking, analysis, group work, organization, problem solving, geometry—the Construction Combine gives students a way to directly see those concepts in action as they work together to construct a set of sheds. For some, the experience leads to a career choice. For others, it still opens their eyes to the possibility.
