YOUNG ROSIES: Jackson girls explore the world of trades

• Video shows girls participating in Rachael's Rosies trades exploration camp.
• In third grade and up, Jackson girls are learning trades such as welding, woodworking, circuitry, and soldering.
• Rachael Wingle, The Workshop, also teaches the girls about the Rosies of WWII.

From welding to woodworking, young girls in Jackson are learning what a future in trades can look like. 16 girls are spending their summer venturing into the world of trades. Rachael Wingle, Lead Director at The Workshop, says, "The biggest thing for this camp was exposure."
4% of women work in trades ( Global Industrial , 2023). Wingle wanted to see that number rise, so she started Rachael's Rosies.

13-year-old Samantha Bennett shares, "We can learn how to work with wood. We can make things. We can also learn how to weld and fix things, and I think it's really important for us to be able to do that."

Rachael's Rosies have been learning trades such as woodworking, welding, and soldering. They're also getting a history lesson.

13-year-old Terrence Farr shared that she didn't know who Rosie the Riveter was before coming to the camp.

Wingle says, "We're going to focus, not only on the skills side of it, teaching them the skills they've never been exposed to, but it's a history lesson about what it is to be a Rosie."

A lesson they can carry as they start thinking about their future.

Wingle continues, "Every single one of them has been totally out of their element and totally out of their comfort zone, but every single girl that said 'I'm not going to do this,' did."

Now, these Rosies are packing up their very own handmade toolboxes, readier than ever. Nine-year-old Ella says, "Mostly only men do it, and people think girls can't do stuff, and I'd like to show people different."

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