Bev Facey Community High Students Win the Treat of First Place at 2024 Wicked Welding Competition

Bev Facey Community High students welded a skeletal motorcycle for their first-place submission to the 2024 Wicked Welding competition.

Sherwood Park, AB. — Bev Facey Community High students showcased tricky welding skills to win the treat of first place at the sixth annual Wicked Welding Competition on October 26. Hosted by the Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLAC) the competition saw teams of four from local high schools create Halloween-themed sculptures at the organization’s testing centre. Among these teams were students from Bev Facey and Ardrossan Junior Senior High.

Bev Facey’s team created a skeletal motorcycle sculpture. The bike came complete with rolling wheels and a working steering system—all in under six hours from start to finish. The team included students Dylan Daly, Carter Epp, Alexander Mailo and Nathan Mischke—along with fabrication teacher Tom Suffern.

“Wicked Welding is a fun and challenging experience, testing our skills, teamwork, communications and quick thinking,” says Epp. “Our team found the most success in our prep work. We met often to discuss our sketch and organize our plans. By the day of the event, we were able to work fluently and bring our design to life with minimal hiccups.”

In addition to the Wicked Welding Competition, Bev Facey students have also illustrated their welding prowess at Skills Alberta. In April 2023, Daly won second place at the regional Skills Alberta welding competition.

“This has been a great group to instruct,” says Suffern. “Even though they don’t all intend to become welders, they’ve taken this trade seriously and developed their skills greatly in the past three years. Two of them have already passed their first weld tests for the Canadian Welding Bureau! I have no doubt in my mind they’re prepared for the future world of work, and I look forward to hearing where they go on from here.”

Additionally, Bev Facey is the only school in Alberta that is accredited as a Canadian Welding Bureau (CWB) testing centre. This allows students to fast track their welding career, by proving their ability to an external body and gaining their first welding certification. The school will be offering the opportunity of CWB testing to all EIPS students at a reduced cost and plans to possibly expand to other schools in the future.

Congratulations to Bev Facey, Ardrossan and all the other teams that competed in the 2024 Wicked Welding Competition!

Elk Island Public Schools is one of Alberta’s largest school divisions, serving approximately 17,950 students in 42 schools. We are proud to be an integral part of our communities, including Sherwood Park, Fort Saskatchewan, Vegreville, Strathcona and Lamont counties, and the western portion of the County of Minburn.

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For more information, media can contact:
Laura McNabb, Director, Communication Services, EIPS 780-417-8204 cell 780-405-4902