Learning in the gravel pit: Heavy Metal Rocks returns

KAMLOOPS – The Heavy Metal Rocks program is back for its 16th year.

Thirty-two students from School District 73 took learning to the gravel pit, getting hands-on experience and sampling 12 different careers in the trades including everything from heavy-duty equipment operators to wildland firefighting.

Naomi St. Savard is one of the Grade 11 and 12 students dipping their steel toes into the heavy-duty trades.

“I’ve been learning so much here,” she told CFJC News. “I’ve just been learning more here than at school, honestly.”

Ron Collins, chairperson for Heavy Metal Rocks, says the program gives students options for future careers.

“From the three or four days in the pit, then they can make an informed decision as to what they want to do, hopefully as a career choice,” said Collins. “It’s just an exploratory program.”

This year, the program saw a record-breaking 56 applicants, many of whom are already looking for a career in the trades.

“My grandpa was really into heavy-duty mechanics, and he always loved to fix the machines,” explained Grade 12 student Kevin Lavoie Dick. “I always loved just watching them work on the machines and just fix everything and he always had a solution for everything possible.”

In the 16 years the program has run, Collins says he’s seen numerous success stories.

“A lot of the students that took the program in the past are now returning as volunteer operators because they said this is where their roots came from,” said Collins. “They want to give back and make sure that students are getting the experience that they had.”

Over the course of the four days on site, students rotate through 12 different stations, spending an hour-and-a-half at each. By the end, students will have had the opportunity to operate up to 24 pieces of heavy-duty equipment.

“I feel more confident here,” said St. Savard “I feel like I’m leaning more into construction in this heavy equipment stuff, more than welding now. I have become a big fan of this over the three days of being here.”