A natural aptitude for tinkering and fixing things started a career path for Trevor Williams. He started in the mill room at Waupaca Foundry in 2011 while he was finishing a degree in Criminal Justice at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. "I've always tinkered with stuff and I like fixing things," he said. “So I volunteered for maintenance one weekend—then I kept volunteering for that work."

In maintenance, Trevor found a range of work that included welding, fabricating, hydraulics, pneumatics and the variety appealed to him. He said his time as summer help was fun, "but when I volunteered in maintenance, those guys were awesome and made me want to join maintenance. It's definitely a family feeling."

Both of his parents worked at the foundry and Trevor looked up to his father and saw first-hand how much he loved his job. In addition to working at the foundry, his family owned a local restaurant so he had been working since he was seven years old. "I knew what work was growing up, but working with the people at the foundry put it in perspective and I knew this was something I could do every day," Trevor said.

His advice to students considering the summer help program goes beyond the opportunity to make good money in a short time frame. "It gives you an idea of what the workforce is: you have to be there every day on time, you're not done until your shift is over and you get an idea of what real life is like."

The summer help program at Waupaca Foundry provides valuable work experience and an insight into the variety of careers in the metalcasting industry. Students interested in summer employment at Waupaca Foundry are encouraged to apply. To learn more and to apply, visit http://waupaca.co/summerhelp.