By Cindy Zomar, Contributing Writer
Marlborough – On a bitter cold, blustery day, students from Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School’s House Carpentry department can be seen standing on scaffolding, installing shingles on a small building rooftop in Berlin, and they are smiling and laughing as they work.
“Wouldn’t you rather be in a nice, warm classroom than out here in the elements?” was the question put to senior James Sommerville from Westborough, who quickly responded, “No way, I love this!”
The sentiments were echoed by the other members of instructor Wayne Coulson’s work crew.
“It’s part of the trade…if your heart and soul isn’t in it, then this isn’t the career path for you,” Coulson said. “But after just the initial complaints, they settle in and begin to enjoy watching their work progress. They know up front that this is going to be an outside job, so they dress appropriately, and they keep moving.”
He insists that despite the harsh learning conditions, “upwards of 50 percent pursue a career path in the field, meaning not just carpentry, but architecture, civil engineering, construction management, home inspection, etc. It’s a rewarding line of work.”
He speaks from experience, having graduated from the Assabet House Carpentry program himself before getting his architecture degree from Wentworth Institute of Technology. Besides teaching at Assabet, Coulson also still enjoys designing structures and drawing up blueprints. One of his latest designs was the large ticket booth and entry building on Assabet’s new football stadium project.
Sommerfield is a good example of a student who plans to pursue a career in construction.
“My plan is to continue learning construction technology, get my certified construction manager license, and then perhaps work as a home inspector,” he said. “I already have my own handyman business, J. Sommerfield Installations & Repairs, and have done quite a few small jobs in Westborough, through word of mouth referrals. It’s a good feeling to ride around and point out things I’ve done with the school, too, such as the gazebo in Northborough’s Ellsworth-McAfee Park last year. Mr. C is the best, he keeps us busy and is always so organized for each job. He’s an expert!”
The students are currently working on a project for the town of Berlin and the Berlin Historical Commission – a curatorial storage building to house artifacts and historical collections. The project has been in the pipeline for a few years, according to Barry Eager, chair of Berlin’s Historical Commission.
“Once we had plans drawn up for the new building, and the concrete poured, it seemed more feasible to have the Assabet students complete the rest,” Eager explained. “We had used Assabet for other projects and renovations in the town, so using them again was a ‘no brainer’! We have a very good relationship with the school.”
The Assabet crew will make the curatorial building weather-tight and then in January they will resume work on the Habitat for Humanity project they have been doing in Northborough, rehabbing an old multifamily home into two new condominium units. They will be back to finish the interior, loft, and stairs in Berlin in the fall.