My mom got me excited about going to Shasta College at a very young age. Thanks to her, I got involved with various clubs like Intervarsity, Phi Theta Kappa, and Umoja.
I started out with general education but quickly transitioned into my major of Industrial Technology. I spent a lot of time in the Manufacturing/Welding areas of the college. Instructors Rick Osbrink and Ron Hardin were instrumental in affecting my career for the better. Osbrink is an incredible instructor. His instruction was intuitive, interactive, and made difficult concepts easy to understand and implement. Hardin was the one who introduced me to welding. His instruction was fascinating, and he made his class something to look forward to every day. I wouldn’t be in the field I am today if it was not for these two instructors.
After graduating from Shasta College, my wife and I moved to Eureka where I started working for BT Metals, a 65-year-old, family-owned company in Humboldt County. We created a 7’ North Star in the Saratoga Hills, and the community heard of the endeavor. We decided we wanted to put our star on top of the 84’ Capitol tree. This has become a team effort. Everyone on our team contributed to this project, whether it be in fabrication, distribution, etc. We also provided three ornament designs for the capitol tree: Bigfoot, an Eagle Feather with a Yurok Tribal Friendship Symbol, and the North Star. We put hundreds on the Capitol Tree. We are excited to be working on this project with the USDA and Six Rivers National Forest.
The skill sets I learned from Ron Hardin at Shasta College, including layout and plasma machining, helped in the execution of this project and my success at BT Metals. All of us at BT Metals send a heartfelt wish with these ornaments that our country and our lives return to normal soon.
Isaac
Shasta College Knight