10 students blaze a trail in Pelly Crossing

PELLY CROSSING - Ten Selkirk FN citizens were declared “trailblazers” last night by Chief Kevin McGinty after successfully completing the Heavy Equipment Operator Essential Skills program at the Hets’ edän kú’ campus of Yukon College in Pelly Crossing.

Rolland Gunter, Allen Joe, Darrin Johnnie, Amy Johnny, Katherine Musick, Amanda Sam, Kelly Silas, Lazareth Simon and Nathan Roberts, and Robin Sam were each honored with speeches, gifts and applause at a graduation ceremony attended by over 80 people at the town’s community centre.

The three women and seven men have spent the past month learning how to operate caterpillar haul trucks and other large machines on a simulator and through hands on training as part of the Pelly Construction haul crew at Minto Mine.

Partners in the project included Selkirk First Nation, Capstone Minto Mine, Pelly Construction, University of Alaska Mine Training Centre, Yukon Mine Training Association, Yukon Government, the federal government and Yukon College.

“It’s been an amazing partnership. The students have had a tremendous opportunity to get out onto the site and to drive the big trucks and they were coming home at the end of the day with huge smiles on their faces and really, really proud about their participation in the project and their ability to handle those big trucks,” said Shelagh Rowles, Centre for Northern Innovation and Mining executive director.

Rowles says students will now have a chance to apply for jobs at the mine as well as with Pelly Construction.

“We hope to put these graduates to work as soon as possible. When positions become available in the coming months they will be the first people I call,” said Jennifer Byram, vice president of Community Affairs for Pelly Construction.

Chief McGinty is pleased with the success of the program.  “These students are trailblazers. The community has witnessed how positive the program was and how confident these graduates are. I think if we ran this again tomorrow, we would have 30 people wanting to sign up, it has been that successful,” said Chief McGinty.

University of Alaska instructor, Sam Reves wrapped up the celebration with a prediction for the ten graduates.

“You began as students. Today you are graduates. The next time we run this program here, you will be teachers.”

(Photo credit: Phil Bastien)