Kincardine teen recognized by Bruce County council for gold at Skills Canada

Declan Mowle of Kincardine has been interested in small engines for years but began working with them for the first time when he was about 12 years old.

Now, at age 18, he has just finished an amazing year, winning gold in the small-powered equipment division at Skills Ontario in early May, and capturing gold in the outdoor power and recreational equipment category at Skills Canada, held May 31 to June 3, in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Thursday, July 6, he was one of three high school students recognized by Bruce County council at its meeting held at the Huron-Kinloss council chamber in Ripley.

Warden Mitch Twolan presented Declan with a certificate of achievement and some items celebrating the county's 150th anniversary.

The warden also recognized Michael Montreuil and Keaton Rich of Sacred Heart High School in Walkerton for their accomplishments at the skills competitions. Michael won silver in computer-aided manufacturing at Skills Ontario, while Keaton won gold in precision machining at Skills Ontario and was named the top secondary school competitor in Ontario, and won silver at Skills Canada.

“It's great to see these young guys perfecting hands-on skills and learning about the work they could be doing in the workforce someday soon," said Twolan. "Their awards are a tribute to their skills and determination and we are proud of them. It is hoped that they stay and work right here in Bruce County.”

Declan, the son of Joan and Kevin Mowle of Kincardine, said his interest in small engines was prompted by a desire to figure out how they work.

Encouraged by his technological skills teacher, Bryan Derksen, to enter the competition, he won gold last year at the provincial level and silver at the national contest.

"This was my second time at Skills Canada so it felt pretty good to bring home the gold," he said. "It was a great experience."

Declan was judged on how well he completed the required tasks, including a theory component, electrical circuit board, dirt bike rear wheel test, and an ATV (All-Terrain Vehicle) challenge.

"I felt good during the competition but I told Mr. Derksen not to get too excited about me winning gold unless I actually did," he said. "I wasn't sure if I did everything right, and I was worried about a student from Quebec."

But he won and he was thrilled to be on the podium, this time with the gold medal around his neck.

Declan plans to complete a fifth year at Kincardine District Secondary School, with a co-operative education placement at Bruce Power. He then wants to take mechanical engineering at Conestoga College in Kitchener.

Besides the recognition of the high school students, Twolan also honoured the following staff for special achievements: Sherri Dillon, office supervisor, highways department; David Smith, senior planner; Kara Van Myall, manager of corporate policy and economic development; Jill Roote, senior policy advisor; and Melissa Legacy, director of library services.

“It’s important to identify the dedication taken to achieve outstanding results by staff”, said county chief administrative officer Kelley Coulter. “We ask our staff to turn obstacles into opportunities and solutions, and these five staff have done just that.”

During the summer of 2016, Dillon responded to a fire at the Wiarton Highway shop in a way that allowed operations to continue as smoothly as possible, and was instrumental in the planning of the new building.

Smith, is the county’s community emergency management co-ordinator. He designed an emergency management program for the county and arranged for an explicit safety awareness program for staff during Emergency Preparedness Week in 2017.

Legacy has advanced the Bruce County presence at the provincial level through her work at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) advocating for rural libraries. She has been instrumental in leading the library services by meeting legislative requirements and as a result, her effort places Bruce County in a prestigious spotlight along with other southern Ontario library services.

The county launched a new Bruce Brand over the past year. Through the leadership of Van Myall and the research efforts of Roote, the roll-out and adoption of the “Be an Explorer” brand has surpassed expectations. Their work contributed to having the ‘Branding Bruce’ project recognized with the “Award of Excellence – Brand Communications” at the recent International Association of Business Communicator’s awards ceremony in Toronto.

“Taking the time to acknowledge the efforts of staff doing exemplary work is important,” said Twolan. “We want to acknowledge their efforts and let them know that we are proud of them and proud of the work they are doing for Bruce County.”