Two Red Deer College students have medals to prove they are the best at their skill.
Justin Meldrum and Eric Koster won gold at the 2018 SkillsCanada National competition in Edmonton June 4 and 5.
Meldrum, a third-year student, won gold in welding and received the Best in Region Award for having the highest spread in points between gold and silver for Team Alberta.
“It feels great to see all of the practice and preparation pay off,” Meldrum said. “I trained a few evenings after class each week and after I finished school I continued to practice all day on Fridays, thanks to a flexible work schedule.”
Koster, a fourth-year electrician apprentice, won gold in the electrical installations competition. He said he became interested in Skills in high school.
“What started as a chance to test my skills and knowledge became something that I really enjoyed, and winning gold at both provincials and nationals has been kind of a dream come true. I’ve been working towards the opportunity to go to Worlds for the last five years,” he said.
There were 550 students from across the country competing in 44 different skill areas at the event.
Meldrum and Koster will have a chance to qualify for WorldSkills 2019 in Kazan, Russia. The two will will compete in a qualifier in Halifax next spring.
Joel Gingrich, RDC School of Trades and Technologies dean, said the college is extremely proud of the two.
“These students have gained valuable skills and expertise in their fields, and their success highlights their ability to achieve recognizably high standards, measured against others who are also the best in their regions and provinces,” he said.
Gingrich said building relationships on a provincial, national and global scale has a positive impact on students and RDC programs.
“When our students perform at this level in the National Skills Competition, it advances the work we do with our apprenticeship students here in Red Deer, and it benefits all of Red Deer College,” he said.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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