Hancock County Technical Center SKILLSUSA

It’s a good thing students from Hancock County Technical Center (HCTC) didn’t have to fly to and from the statewide skills competition they attended earlier this month. If they had, they would have been forced to spend considerable time at the metal detector on their way home. That’s because 30 of the students came home with medals from the SkillsUSA Maine Championships held March 6 in Bangor — 22 gold medals, four silver medals and four bronze medals. “We definitely dominated at states,” said HCTC Director Amy Boles. She said the school shattered its own previous record of medals won at the competition, and may have also broken the state record for number of gold medals won by a single school. SkillsUSA, according to its website, is “a partnership of students, teachers and industry working together to ensure America has a skilled workforce.” Competitions are held at both the state and national levels, giving students a chance to demonstrate their skills in categories ranging from architectural drawing to welding. Boles said the commanding performance by HCTC students is “a testimonial to our school, to how hard our staff and students have worked to get them ready for this competition.” The strong showing at the state championship means many of the medal winners from HCTC are now eligible to go to the national championship in Louisville, Ky., from June 22 through June 26. That trip comes at a cost, however — about $50,000 in total, according to Boles — and so a fundraising effort is now under way. One fundraiser has already been held at Pat’sPizza. It raised close to $1,800. The school will once again hold a 5K road race and walk and a one-mile fun run, both on Sunday, June 7.Registrationfees for the race go to help pay for the SkillsUSA travel costs. There is also a page set up on the gofundme.com website where people can makeDONATIONSto help defray the travel costs. The web address for that page is:gofundme.com/GetHCTCtoSkills. For those who don’t feel comfortable donating money online, Boles saidCHECKScan be made out payable to Hancock County Technical Center and sent to the school at 112 Boggy Brook Road, Ellsworth, ME 04605. For more information, call Boles at 667-9729. Other fundraisers are also being planned. Boles said one of the things she is proudest of is that the students who participate in SkillsUSA represent schools from across Hancock County. “We’re hoping that, countywide, we can get support for them to go to Louisville,” Boles said.