ORGANIZERS - Kari Wadd, left, and Waseca Chamber President Ann Fitch greet those attending a career exhibit at the Mill, Thursday, October, 12, 2022.
Prepared and ready for hire
Waseca’s career exhibit returns to the Mill after long absence
Waseca’s career exhibit returns to the Mill after long absence
Sat, 12/31/2022 - 12:59am
Nearly 300 juniors and seniors from Waseca High School loaded into six buses to attend a Waseca Career Exhibit at the Mill, a Waseca business, on Wednesday afternoon, October 12.
Fifty-five vendors, including local businesses, area colleges, and organizations set up displays at The Mill to share their programs and offerings. The program was a collaboration between the Waseca Area Chamber of Commerce and Waseca High School.
“Some businesses were ready to hire these high school students today!” Ann Fitch, Chamber President said. “This was a great way for kids to preview the exhibit and talk to real business owners.
“The high-schoolers were prepared and asked great questions!”
One business, American Family Insurance, had requests from five attendees to explain the purpose behind it. “And about another dozen recognized me from the coffee break debates,” Matthew Petsinger jokes.
“At lunchtime, Subway provided box lunches for the vendors,” Fitch added. “And the Mill has been fantastic to work with.”
Planning for Wednesday's event has been underway for a year among Fitch, the Chamber, and the Career Pathways teachers at the high school.
“We started this process last year with Clint Link and got the ball rolling with our first event in many, many years, with the help of Kari Wadd.”
Another career exhibit, a more hands-on event, is in the works for the spring of 2023. “For instance, if Britton Plumbing and Heating comes, we want them to have something hands-on for the kids to work with. We want them to have an actual wrench they can turn, rather than just talking,” Fitch explained. “We’re really excited about it and have been very impressed with how today turned out.”
“You never know what the students are going to enjoy,” Peggy Hildebrandt of Connor Plumbing and Heating said. “We made them talk to us before we gave them popcorn. But they genuinely seemed to enjoy today. They asked a lot of great questions”
Following the student preview, which began at about 12:30, the full exhibit was open to the public from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.