Welding students gain course credit for town project

RIVER BEND- Sparks flew Wednesday as James Lovick took one of his final exams for Craven Community College.

The sparks were caused by more than Lovick's concentrating, though he did plenty of that as he welded steps in place on a caboose in River Bend.

Lovick is one of about a dozen welding students from Craven Community College providing work-for-credit labor on the red caboose, which is owned by the town.

The students helped design and build steps for the caboose, which the town may use as an emergency-operations center when renovations on it are finished.

"We've had plenty of experience in the classroom and on campus, but it's nice to be able to do a project like this one actually out on location," Lovick said. "It's cool to be a part of something like this."

River Bend resident Egon Lippert approached the college about taking on the project. Lippert has done much of the work on the caboose himself, including applying its four coats of red paint.

"If we tried to get a company to do this, it would cost us at least $1,500," he said. "This situation is a win-win for both of us: The students gain work experience and the town gets four steps closer to completing the caboose."

Eric Braddy is the welding instructor at the college who took on the project. Work for the students included measuring, making a blueprint and pattern for the steps, then construction and installation.

"It's been a few months since we started the process, because you have to fit the work in between class time and labs," Braddy said. "It took us three or four weeks just to make the steps."

The welding classes take on community projects like this one as often as possible, Braddy said.

"We don't pick just anybody to do this," he said. "It's not work for beginners."

Some students just finished making a piece of playground equipment for a church in Havelock.

Student welder Todd Toler, who is from Bridgeton, said this is his first such community project for his welding class.

"It's pretty rewarding to be a part of something like this and to have a part in making it come together," Toler said. "It's cool to know that something we did will be part of the town for a long time."