Take away corporate sponsors and volunteers, and the largest annual conference in Kansas City likely would not exist. The second day of SkillsUSA Championships, slated for June 23-24, is considered the single greatest day of industry volunteerism in America.
Nearly 2,000 volunteers, officials, and judges from business and industry invest about 60,000 hours of their time during that week to ensure that the more than 5,600 student competitors in 96 hands-on skill and leadership contests enjoy a memorable experience at the national event.
Hearlihy, a division of Pitsco Education and longtime leading provider of drafting supplies, is a sponsor of the Architectural Drafting competition, which attracts about 75 competitors who are state champions at the secondary and postsecondary levels.
Hearlihy is donating an Architect/Engineer Drafting Kit for the top three placers in each of the two divisions and is providing eraser shields and drafting pencils for all contestants.
"We are proud to be a part of the architectural drafting competition through SkillsUSA," said Hearlihy Representative Kevin Bolte. "This organization has done a tremendous job cultivating student interest in so many career fields. We're happy to play a small part in the national championships."
The Architectural Drafting event is cochaired by Tom Bendorf and Marie Boatright. Boatright, a senior project architect with Wellner Architects, Inc., in Kansas City, helps procure prizes and participation rewards for all competitors, as well as writes the drafting problem statement that students must address during the competition.
"It is extremely important to have corporate partners such as Hearlihy, Autodesk, Chief Architect, and others," Boatright said. "We have a limited budget for our competition." In addition to the Hearlihy prizes, first-place finishers will receive a laptop, and all top-three finishers will be given textbooks, software, and other donated items.
For years, Boatright attended the SkillsUSA Championships with her parents, who serve as volunteers, and in 2007 she served as a judge in the Architectural Drafting competition. She's never looked back and doesn't mind using vacation days to work with some of the top aspiring architects in the country.
"It doesn't surprise me as much as it warms my heart to see that there are young people who have such great talents and care to do great work," Boatright said. "The entries by the winners are usually of a very high quality. To be a winner in Architectural Drafting, you have to know your craft."
Learn more about SkillsUSA. Check out other news from Pitsco Education, LEGO Education, or Hearlihy at our online newsroom.