Three Didsbury High School students and one Carstairs High School student have returned from the Provincial Skills Alberta Competition. The event took place in Edmonton on May 7-8.
According to Chinook's Edge School Division. Didsbury High School students Johan Eriksson and Ryder Mierke both competed in the carpentry event, as did Auston Wright from Hugh Sutherland School (in Carstairs). Logan Swanson from Didsbury High School participated in the welding event. All four students qualified for the opportunity after competing in regional events in March 2025.
Wright placed fourth in the carpentry competition, he explained that it was super stressful working on a timeline with judges staring at you. It was a good experience overall, and plan to compete next year. Mierke also hopes to compete once again next year.
"This was a great experience for me. Feeling a sense of accomplishment doesn’t always have to come from earning a medal as long as you feel like you have grown your skills in the trade, and I have,” shared Eriksson.
Carpentry students built a gazebo with what Eriksson calls “a challenging roof structure”. The students were able to prepare in advance by looking at the plans and practicing building the project at home. Also, they had to come prepared for changes to the plans that competition organizers could add after they had arrived in Edmonton, shared Chinook's Edge.
“I like the challenge of it all,” says Eriksson, who has been invited to provincials before. “I also like that 20 of the best high school carpenters are all in the same room. It gets intense sometimes. At home, you might spend a couple of hours here or there on a project as it fits your schedule, but at provincials, you have to build a whole project in 12 hours over two days. It’s challenging, and it’s kind of survival of the fittest, but I enjoy that.
Cassandra Buck, Didsbury High School’s shop teacher, went with the students to Edmonton.
“I am incredibly proud of these students. They are skilled, hard-working and passionate.”
There were 32 categories in the competition, including computer animation, auto body repair, graphic design, electronics, photography, hairstyling, robotics and web design.
The school division has 12 schools in neighbouring communities, including Olds, Mountain View County, Didsbury and Carstairs. Chinook's Edge has a total of 11,000 students across 40 Central Alberta schools.
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