By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
Staff Writer
Brandon Twp. —The Brandon High School welding students won an award from the US Air Force by making a fireplace.
“The Air Force had put out a flier that said to create a project that is Air Force related,” said BHS teacher Sarah Walker. “Could be anything, a drawing, a poster, anything. And they sent it out to 110 schools.”
Walker said that the students brainstormed ideas, and had decided to make a fireplace, which was something they had been wanting to try.
“I taught them how to do the work, but they completely did the work on their own,” said Walker. “When they had the CAD designs ready, they cut the shapes out and welded them in the shop. A lot of high school shops don’t have the type of technology to do this, but Brandon does.”
The class of 11th and 12th graders submitted a photo of the project, and on Nov. 17, they were announced as a winner.
“They showed up with a brand new toolbox,” said Walker. “And they gifted the fireplace to the Air Force, and they’re going to display it at their main Air Force base in Michigan.”
Currently, the welding class is only open to 11th and 12th graders, but there will be classes opening next year for all four grades, as well as a possible community education program over the summer.
“We’re going to build a few more fire places this year and fine tune them, and possibly sell some of them in the spring or next year,” said Walker.