BRUNSWICK

Region Ten Technical High School held its field day Monday, where it hosted the Maine Army National Guard. The Guard’s presence allowed students to see what’s under the hood of a number of heavy duty military vehicles.

And sit at the wheel of course.

As students watched members of the Augustabased maintenance company quickly load what looked like a huge metal box back onto a truck, Sgt. James Sanford explained the field readiness system allows them to drop the trailer — essentially a repair shop — on the ground quickly. It is a gigantic toolbox equipped with an engine hoist and the ability to weld, and has drawers and drawers of tools.

He and another recruiter for the Maine Army National Guard were at the school Monday, along with soldiers amidst their two-week annual training.

Attending events like field day at Region Ten allows the National Guard to give back to the community and show it a little bit of what it does, Sanford said, while training and honing their technical skills.

“We see a lot of people drive by and get that ‘Wow’ factor because it’s not something they see everyday,” he said. “For the people that we bring this to, to see, it’s something they really enjoy.”

They also get to show the public the many pieces of National Guard vehicles that have capabilities civilian equipment doesn’t. This repair company shows a different side of what a mechanic can do.

They travel with their trades to schools like Region Ten to show they do have jobs that transfer over to the civilian side, often with a credential. Motor transport or heavy equipment operators can get their commercial drivers license. Soldiers who learn how to be a medic walk away with their EMT basic license.

Sanford said just having the service under your belt tells an employer that you know how to lead, know how to follow, believe in discipline and punctuality, and that you believe in structure.

“This is only part time,” he said. “It’s 39 days so it allows you the flexibility to pursue a college education or a civilian career.”

And now, all members of the Maine National Guard receive 100 percent tuition to all Maine state universities and community colleges.

Dan Pratt, a Mt. Ararat High School sophomore, is in the welding program at Region Ten and got to go check out the National Guard’s welding equipment Monday. It also showed him that he can go out and travel the world, “help my country, and have a good job. I think that’s pretty awesome.”

He plans to enter the military after high school, though he doesn’t know if he’ll attend college while serving, or if he’ll serve and go to college after. He’s leaning toward the Navy. His grandfather was a Seabee.

Jimmy Minieri of Freeport is a junior taking the EMT course at Region Ten, allowing him to earn his certification and five free college credits with paramedicine. He is looking at many options to enter the field he wants to work in but has also considered the military. He’d want to be a combat medic.

Minieri also looking at attending Southern Maine Community College or Eastern Maine Community College to earn his fire science degree and paramedic license. He is already working as an EMT on Pownal Fire Department and will soon take his National Registry EMT exam.

Pratt said he’s followed a plan for how high school should go, which adapts, and Region Ten has helped expose him to the different trades he now knows exist in the world. In addition to the job fair and post-secondary fair that allows students to meet potential employers, students got to speak to representatives with the Air Force, Marines and the National Guard.

“All this exposure, it helps show kids and me, that there’s a big wide world out there and here’s the options. You get to do what you want,” he said.

dmoore@timesrecord.com