Drive underway for sponsors of WorldSkills Competition participants

RICHMOND, Va. — The 39th WorldSkills Competition is taking place in Shizuoka, Japan from Nov. 14-21, 2007 and the U. S. collision industry is being called upon to help support those representing our country. WorldSkills provides an exchange and comparison of world-class competency standards in 38 different industrial trades and service sectors of the global economy, including autobody repair and refinishing.

Held every two years at different locations around the globe, the event allows young auto body and refinish technicians from America to showcase their abilities next to their peers from a total of 45 different countries. It is essentially an Olympics for industries involved.

Through SkillsUSA, a nonprofit, membership-driven partnership of students, teachers and industry representatives, candidates go through a rigorous series of competitions first at school, then at the regional, state and national levels to determine who qualifies for the trip to Japan.

"The WorldSkills competition provides an important public relations component for our industry by emphasizing the accomplished, exciting career that collision repair can be," states Mark Claypool, President and CEO of Mentors at Work and the volunteer TeamUSA Leader for the WorldSkills Competition. "This positive visibility reflects well on the industry as a whole; it can be leveraged into an ideal vehicle for recruiting talented young individuals into our workforce."

The characteristics of the WorldSkills competition are clearly in line with those of the National Auto Body Council (NABC) and its commitment to enhancing industry image. "Those who emerge from this competition have proven time and again to be outstanding role models for other young people in the trade," says NABC Executive Director Chuck Sulkala. "We, at NABC, cherish the event. Its success is fundamental to our future as an industry."

Because there is no government funding for the event, financial support must come from private sources. For the 2005 competition in Helsinki, Finland, NABC and its fund-raising arm, the Collision Industry Foundation, adopted the cause resulting in a $50,000 grant to SkillsUSA that allowed two young technicians, Nick Ranker (Colorado) and Bodie Smith (Utah), to make the trip and represent our country.

This year, Mike Anderson of Wagonwork Collision Centers in Alexandria, Virginia has taken up the mantle, making it his mission to facilitate fund-raising efforts. He has already sent out a letter of appeal to over 700 industry-related individuals and entities, and-with help from organizations like NABC-plans on creating even more visibility for the cause in the upcoming days.

It's not an easy task, but Anderson is up to the challenge.

For additional information, e-mail Mark Claypool at [email protected]. Mike Anderson can be reached at [email protected]. Visit the official SkillsUSA Web site at www.skillsusa.org and the official WorldSkills Web site at www.worldskills.org.