Fifteen students from four area trade schools were recognized at a recent "Breakfast of Champions" celebration prior to leaving to compete at the National SkillsUSA Championships in Kansas City, Mo.

The breakfast sponsored by Air Products, energized and prepared the students as they headed to Kansas City where they recently competed against more than 5,600 contestants from all 50 states and three territories in 99 separate events June 23-28.

The SkillsUSA Championships which began locally and continues through the state and national levels is the showcase for the best career and technical students in the nation.

The SkillsUSA Championships is a multi-million dollar event that occupies a space equivalent to 16 football fields.

Nearly 1,500 judges and contest organizers from labor and management make the national event possible.

The fifteen students who represented the SkillsUSA Council and Pennsylvania District 11 at nationals included: Austin Berger, power equipment technology; Austin Fenstermaker, precision machining and Robert Metzger, CNC turning, Lehigh Career and Technical Institute;

Ty Druckenmiller, Larry Eberts III, and Cheyenne Smith, career pathways showcase– industrial and engineering technology; Brittany Sloss, Amanda Strohl, and Andrew Vinson, community service, and Brandon Kutos, residential plumbing, Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School;

Jason Crawford, Matthew Harman, Jr., and Dylan King, automated manufacturing technology, and Ryan Alexander, employment application process, Upper Bucks County Technical School and

Deisy Prudencio, customer service: Career Institute of Technology.

Austin Fenstermaker is currently in the Internship Program at Air Products. He works in their instrumentation and equipment technology division where he helps to design and manufacture precision machining components that will be used to develop new hardware and equipment to advance Air Products' technologies.

This is the second National Championships for Brandon Kutos, a senior at BAVTS.

Last year, he placed eighth in the nation in the residential plumbing contest.

"With the help of our member businesses we are able to offer opportunities for the 5,700 students attending Career and Technical Schools in Lehigh, Northampton, Monroe, and Upper Bucks counties to showcase their trade skills and strengthen their abilities in leadership, communication, and community service," said Thea Phalon, executive director with SkillsUSA Council.

"In addition to helping our students become better employees, we also work with businesses and industries to address the need for skilled labor in the greater Lehigh Valley," Phalon stated.

SkillsUSA Council is a nonprofit, 501 (c) 3, organization whose mission is to create a world-class workforce by developing partnerships among the business community and our schools.