Okanagan College claimed half a dozen medals at the recent annual Skills BC provincial competition held in Abbotsford, including gold in two categories, earning berths into the national competition in Saskatoon next month.
College student Nathan Schulte, from Kelowna, won a gold medal in plumbing while Ethan Delichte, from Coldstream, also won a gold in automotive service tech, both outperforming competitors from across the province and will vie for the national title in their respective categories.
Daniel Forbes, from Kelowna, won silver in automotive collision repair and bronze was won by the following apprentices: Samantha Wardrop, of Salmon Arm in aerospace technology, Maxwell Anderson, of Kelowna, in automotive service tech, and Nathan Barg, of Summerland, in cabinetmaking.
Schulte, who can now call himself the best apprentice plumber in B.C., completed the entry-level foundation plumbing program at Okanagan College in February and is currently apprenticing at Modulux Designs in Winfield.
He put his name forward to represent the college because he knew it would be a great learning experience and he wanted to test his skills.
“I’m a very competitive person and I’ve played sports my whole life so I was excited to go up against the rest of the province’s apprentices,” said Schulte. “It was really a lot of fun and I knew that no matter what the outcome, it would be a good experience.”
Schulte had six hours to build a drainage system for a bathroom group (sink, tub, toilet). According to his coach, instructor Bruce Slater, the assignment was challenging for a first-year student.
“It was really tough and the students used all of their allowed time,” said Slater. “At the end of the day Nathan was more accurate. Only three out of the six entries passed the pressure test, Nathan’s was one of them.
“I’m very proud of him and it’s really incredible to see how far he’s come. At the beginning of the program most of the students didn’t even know how to hold a wrench and to see the work they can do now, says a lot about their abilities and how strong our program is.”
Schulte will head to the national competition in his hometown of Saskatoon in a month. The experience will be extra special for him because his parents will be able to watch him compete.
