Stihl, in collaboration with the Virginia Manufacturers Assn., is fostering the next generation of skilled manufacturing workers one teenage camper at a time. On July 26-29, the company hosted 34 high school students at its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Virginia Beach for its ninth Manufacturing Technology Summer Camp. This marked the first year the camp has been held since 2019, returning with a forward-looking theme: “Lighting the Future.”

“This camp is a great way to promote local manufacturing and introduce students to careers in a field that they may not otherwise have exposure,” says Lorraine Amesbury Holder, senior vice president of operations at Stihl. “Not only do the students walk away from this camp learning about Stihl Inc., this camp leaves students excited about pursuing careers in manufacturing after they graduate, helping Stihl Inc. and other companies fill their future positions.”

Through the camp, the company promoted careers in modern manufacturing and educated teens on both skilled trades and degreed career paths in manufacturing.

“This program allows us to engage with students and introduce them to a STEM career field and new technologies, with the goal of really getting them passionate about this industry and correcting any old misconceptions they may have about manufacturing,” adds Courtney Addison, Stihl Inc. manager of talent development.

This free four-day program provides high school students experience with manufacturing process planning, budgeting, and product quality, as well as the significance of hard work and collaboration. Students were given a hands-on technology-based project working in teams to build desk lamps using Stihl components.

On the final day, teams competed in a friendly competition before a panel of distinguished judges including Jen Kiggans, U.S. House of Representatives; Gary Pan, Commissioner, Virginia Department of Labor & Industry; and Michael Berlucchi, Virginia Beach City Council.

Members of the winning Team Bleu- River Aman, Carson Bernstein, BellaGrace Chavez, Issac Halcomb, Aiden Kearns, Joseph Quartararo and Emily Wagner— received a $1,000 scholarship from Virginia Industry Foundation and were named 2023 Stihl Manufacturing Technology Summer Camp champions.