ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com)—
Remember those crafts projects you made at summer camp? Imagine what you could have created with power tools. There's a summer camp where more than friendships are being built. It sounds like the cast album from stomp but this isn't a concert, it's a camp. Construction camp.By looking at the pink hammers and hard hats, its girls only. "I just wanted to try something new, I've never done anything like this before," said camper Myesha Adams.They call it MAGIC, an acronym for Mentoring a Girl in Construction. It started three years ago by MOWIT, an acronym for Missouri Women in Trades. For one week during the summer the lesson they hammer into these girls is "you can do it," despite old-fashioned ideas about women's work.
"There are contractors that when they see a woman still think I'm not hiring her because she can't do the job or because of the way men are going to behave around her or lots of reasons, so it is still tough out there," said Teresa Willis, with Missouri Women in Trades.
There is more to this camp that just swinging a hammer. The girls also learn wiring and even welding. They built stools on the first day. "We think girls should be able to do anything they want to do and we want girls to know about all of the career opportunities out there," added Willis. "I just like learning. Oh that's how it works, I never knew that, it's just really cool," said camper Madi Hoisington.
They could be at the pool or just hanging out but these 17 teens are doing something more constructive. The camp is free of charge and is sponsored by several organizations including the Carpenters Joint Apprenticeship Program.
