I still often wonder what I want to be when I grow up. Reading a story about a particular job or trade, I will muse, “maybe I could go back to school and learn how to do that.” I do not think I am alone. Friends have shared similar thoughts and many of them have entertained ideas about advanced degrees or sudden changes in their career paths. It takes a special and brave person to follow through and actually step out of their comfort zone to take on something completely new. I sat down recently with an Olympia woman who did just that.
Arlene Hartman is a registered nurse. She worked for many years in the hospital setting at Providence St. Peter Hospital. After having her three children she retired from full-time nursing but used her skills to benefit others by enrolling in the volunteer training program at SafePlace Olympia. SafePlace offers free and confidential services to people who have experienced all forms of domestic violence.
Arlene worked directly with victims on the Sexual Assault Response and Prevention (SARP) team. The SARP team strives to lessen the impact of sexual assault on survivors. As a member of the SARP team, Arlene was available 24 hours a day to be a victim advocate. She would help victims through their initial medical interaction, usually in the emergency room. For almost two decades Arlene helped victims access the social services available to them and guided them through the process.
Arlene served on the SafePlace board of trustees for five years and now is a member of the finance committee. Once her three children were grown she decided to take a metals class at South Puget Sound Community College. She had dabbled in art throughout her life with a focus on tile and stained glass, but she was always attracted to metals.
She enrolled in an introductory class called Creative Metalsmithing. According to Arlene the class taught you, “just enough to make you dangerous.” She enjoyed the class so much that she asked the instructor how she could spend more time in the studio and was told she would have to enroll in the program. Arlene promptly enrolled in the two-year program to become a Certified Welder.
She learned several different types of welding, from fine work with a blowtorch called oxyacetylene welding to arc welding that is used in the fabrication of large steel structures like bridges and cars. A few women came and went throughout Arlene’s two years of training, but she was the only female to complete the entire SPSCC program and became a Certified Welder.
Ironically, the professor in the male-dominated welding program at SPSCC is a woman. Sarah Patterson teaches courses in everything from Thermal Cutting to Welding Theory. “Arlene blew everyone’s mind,” shares Patterson. “She was the only female and older than the other students, but she held her own and became proficient in the trade, producing high quality work.” From the beginning of the program Arlene’s goal was to be an artist, but her commitment to learning the trade was evident to all. “She is an incredibly intelligent woman, and her positive attitude was always welcome in the shop,” shares Patterson.
After graduating from the welding program, Arlene began doing small projects for friends using a plasma cutter for address signs and metal sculpture. Soon she was taking on larger commercial projects and her business, Bay Side Metals, was born. She converted her garage into a studio to accommodate her equipment.
One of the first big projects Arlene embarked upon was a series of seven metal panels that she donated to SafePlace. The panels were a labor of love and grace the courtyard of the building in downtown Olympia.
Arlene was also commissioned to fabricate a large sculpture for the lobby of Pope John Paul II High School in Lacey and has done several arbors and even crafted a dragon. She also has participated in the Percival Plinth project. The plinths are platforms located along the promenade on Olympia’s waterfront. Each year the plinths at Percival Landing provide a base for loaned sculpture by local and regional artists.
In addition to creating art in her studio, Arlene is now working with welding students at Capital High School. The welding department at Capital has both a boat building and a bike building class. Arlene helps teach students the basics of welding. Each student comes up with a project including drawings and a materials list. Once the project receives the instructor’s approval, Arlene helps them strategize and problem solve. Students have made rowing shells, bookshelves, stuff for their cars and even a large home barbecue.
We may not all be able to become certified welders, but Arlene’s success gives me confidence that it is never too late to learn a new skill or even find a new career path at any point in our lives.
If you are interested in more examples of Arlene’s work or would like to commission a project, email her at hartah@comcast.net.
