BRUNSWICK — Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation recently awarded a $4,939 Lowe’s Toolbox for Education grant to Region Ten Technical High School to purchase a waterbased paint system for the auto collision program.

Auto collision instructor Garry Carr said, “waterbased spray paint is more environmentally friendly than the more common oilbased systems, is less costly for customers, and represents the leading edge in auto collision painting technology.”

Students Jamie Dufresne and Karina Harriman are copresidents of the Region Ten chapter of SkillsUSA, the national student organization promoting students learning technical skills. Under their leadership, the auto collision students have taken on a “pay it forward” project featuring the new water-based paint system. The auto collision students will refurbish and repaint a donated van and then give the repainted van to the Coastal Humane Society. Region Ten auto technology instructor David Giroux reports his students are currently troubleshooting and making any needed repairs before turning the vehicle over to the auto collision students for bodywork and repainting.

Karen Stimpson, executive director of the Coastal Humane Society, reports the van will be welcome indeed. “Our current van is in steady use transporting animals and volunteers, and it is starting to show its age,” Stimpson said.

Brunswick Lowe’s store manager Strat Dumakis joined instructor Carr, students Dufresne and Harriman, Humane Society Marketing Coordinator Jane Siviski, and shelter manager Aggie Purinton to announce the grant award.