The Spark for Change

The other day in the mail, we received the Bates Technical College Spring Catalog. I was just going to pitch it in the recycle bin, and my mom happened to open it up and found this:

The picture is so small, the text is unreadable on here. It reads:

David Ellis' sixth grade teacher sparked his fascination with
electronics. "My teacer introduced me to electricity and electronics at a
young age through experiments with batteries, electrical currents, and
fuses. I've been interested in this area ever since," says David.

David pursued teaching to make a difference in his community--to help student
learn. He felt he could provide them with a different perspective on
learning. After a three-year stint as a middle school and high school
teacher, David felt like he didn't have the resources to properly help the
students, so he decided to switch gears.

"I originally enrolled in Electrical Power and Process Automoation in 2009
with the intent of moving to another program involving computer networking,"
says David. "However, I enjoyed the electronics part so much that I
decided to stay rather than switch programs."

This year, David rebuilt several circuit boards used for the Point Defiance
Zoo and Aquarium's Zoolights. He eventually wants to construct a small
stage with blinking lights for his daughters, ages 1, 3, and 5.

"My instructor, Mr. [Tom] Newman [pictured above], answers any questions I
have," says David. "He is exceptionally helpful and will go out of his way
for his students."

David couldn't be happier with his career switch. "When I trained to be
a teacher, I knew what I was getting into," he says. "When I began this
program, I found that I could find a career doing one of several tasks, from
maintenance and repair to power, automation, and robotics."

Set to graduate next fall (of 2010), David hopes to land an apprenticeship
with an electical power company such as the Bonneville Power Company or Puget
Sound Energy.

For some reason, David never tells me about these things! I'm glad my mom thought to open the catalog, or I would have missed seeing this. I also have to say that David is the only person I know who is able to use both sides of his brain, and be good at it. English, History, and literature are quite the opposite of what he's doing now, which involves a lot of math--among other things. And yet he's doing amazingly well, and going very quickly too. God blesses a sincere effort, and David has been very serious and committed to this. What an awesome guy!