Four days, hard work and anticipation culminated into one hopeful statement: “and the Gold medal for Graphic Design goes to Tommy Beke.”
That is the way it went at the 21st Skills Canada National Competition.
“The National Skills Competition is a pinnacle event of the year” said Chuck Temple, Beke’s teacher advisor from Bishop Macdonell Catholic High School. “This is the event that allows top-ranked students from every corner of the country to really show their stuff. They are all vying to be number one.”
This year the competition was held in Saskatoon. Students participated in challenges representing almost every skilled trade within the transportation, manufacturing, construction, service and technology sectors.
Graphic design is in the Technology sector, and it’s the one Beke has worked to master.
The Grade 12 student had his heart set on gold. Temple advised him that it wouldn’t be easy.
“I told him it was like fitting through the narrow neck of a bottle. While I was confident in his skill, these competitions are extremely difficult. Minor point deviations can be the difference between making it or not making it.”
Beke competed in the M&T Regional Graphics competition and won it for the second year. He then went to the Ontario Skills Competition this past month and won it too – placing as the number one student in the technology sector and winning his seat on Team Ontario. Beke was again in a position to rank in Canada.
At the end of May the National Skills Competition was held in Saskatchewan. The competition was formidable. For two days he and fifteen other students – both secondary and post-secondary were challenged. On day one a six-hour project required designers to develop a complex donation package, display board and brochure.
On day two, a Jazz Festival poster, musician promotion cards and shirt design were required.
After twelve hours it was done. Encouragement turned into anticipation as the three national judges scrutinized every detail of every student’s work.
In the Graphic Design Secondary category Beke took the gold, Quebec took the silver and Bronze went to Nunavut.
