We don’t want to brag, but we’re pretty stoked that our very own welder extraordinaire Jason Carr has been named one of five finalists in Miller’s “Build Welding Future” contest. Jason was chosen from a pool of more than 400 candidates across the country.
Six years ago, Jason packed up his car and moved from his hometown in West Virginia to complete a nine-month welding course at Hobart Institute of Welding Technology in Troy, Ohio. Hamilton snatched him up after graduation, and the rest is pure alchemy.
Read more about Jason below—and most importantly— vote for Jason here! The deadline is today, September 27.
Q: How did you become interested in welding?
A: I took a class in trade school in 10th grade that required me to explore some career options. I knew some people in the welding class so I decided to try it. I knew nothing about it, but I fell in love with it. I found out about Hobart from my welding teacher. He went every summer to classes to stay fresh.
Q: What drew you to it?
A: It’s about building things from the ground up. I can make the parts. I can assemble them and make a complete finished product. Right now, for example, I’m working on something that I helped build, and now I’m putting all the wheels and accessories on it. It’s pretty cool to see it all come together.
Q: What does a typical day look like for you at Hamilton?
A: I could be cutting out parts or welding or doing product finishing. It’s always fun to work on heavy duty capacity carts and trailers. You have to work with cranes to move things around.
Q: What do you like most about being a welder?
A: It doesn’t feel like a job. A lot of people go to work and hate it. With my job, it’s fun to do. Every day, it’s always something new.
Q: How will you feel if you win?
A: I think it would be awesome to be recognized by the most well-known welding manufacturer in the world. I never thought I would be where I am today, so to receive that honor from them would be pretty cool.
