RATHDRUM — From the driver's seat of the logging processor, Tiegan Black Eagle-Seres took his spot behind the controls with quiet confidence. 

Under the watchful eye of Brad Gordon, the Lakeland High School student picked up the lumber by raising the right-hand stick, swung the bucket to the side with the left-hand stick and then, using a preset command, neatly sliced through the wood with the touch of a button. 

It was his second year participating in Hard Hats, Hammers, Healthcare and Hot Dogs, and Black Eagle-Seres said he wanted to test out different equipment this year. 

“It was fun, I like the trades,” Black Eagle-Seres said. 

Working with machinery speaks to Black Eagle-Seres about his future, and he said he hopes to go into a field where he works with his hands. 

Gordon owns Lake City Logging and was struck by the students' manners as they tried their hands at the heavy machinery. 

"All of them said thank you and were really appreciative. Maybe they find some interest in logging and when they get out of school, they’ll look us up,” Gordon said.   

The event was a partnership between KTEC, North Idaho College Parker Technical Education Center, high schools and industry partners.   

About 550 high school students from 14 regional schools connect with potential future employers to learn more about industries they otherwise wouldn’t regularly encounter. 

Gemma Loose, a ninth-grader at Lake City High School, said welding was the favorite thing she had tried.    

“I’ve tried driving the machines and I’ve tried welding just now,” Loose said. “It was just cool to try because I’ve never done anything like it before.” 

Sparks flew behind safety curtains as KTEC welding students Brooklyn Anderson, Taylor Nash and Isaac Deuel took students through welding 101. 

The main question the welding students received throughout the day was, “How do I do this?”    

“Everyone is happy to do it. Some kids think that they’re going to catch on fire,” Deuel said.  

Some of the students came in with some fears about welding, but they learned a little from the experience and sometimes surprised themselves. 

“If you touch the metal with the gun, put that hood down,” Anderson instructed.  

Within the welding area, the visiting students got to try something different outside their usual classroom.  

“Even if you’re not good at welding, you can still have a really good time,” Deuel said. “There were some straight lines, good cuts. I’m impressed with some of these kids who it’s their first time doing this.” 

Within sight of the semi-truck driving station, Trevor Miller said he was impressed by how many Kellogg and Wallace students attended. 

Representing Silver Valley Upward Bound through the University of Idaho, Miller said that it’s a unique experience for high schoolers to be able to handle machinery worth millions of dollars and consider their lives after high school. 

“The real-life stuff really matters,” Miller said. “The excitement the students have afterwards just seeing all of the hardware and all of the resources available at a college or a trade school, it’s pretty awesome.” 

    Lake City High School student Gemma Loose learns how to use a welding gun at KTEC from KTEC student Isaac Deuel. About 550 students from 14 different schools learned about different trade professions at Hard Hats, Hammers, Healthcare and Hot Dogs on Thursday at Kootenai Technical Education Center.

    Robert Smith, a journeyman lineman with Kootenai Electric Cooperative, demonstrates a backfeed electrical scenario during Hard Hats, Hammers, Healthcare and Hot Dogs. Throughout the day, high school students from 14 schools cycled through different demonstrations to learn more about trades they can pursue.