Elder High School not only transforms boys into men, but also prepares its students for life. To showcase many of the different careers available, Elder hosts an annual career day during Catholic Schools Week. After Skyline, Grade School Colors Day and Crazy Clothes Day, Elder hosted Career Day on Friday, January 31st.

In order for the event to take off, a large amount of planning has to be done. Alumni Director Brian Bill explains the planning and tells, “Elder is very lucky to have dedicated alumni like Jim Bruner ’66 and Luke Busam ’00 who coordinated the many presenters who attended our Career Day. Luke was a new addition this year, but Jim has been coordinating the event since its inception 18 years ago. It entails locating professionals, almost all of whom are graduates of Elder, who not only have the time to be here with us, but the willingness to be here and share with students their knowledge of their particular fields.”

Gathered in the fieldhouse were more than 68 workers of different trades and professions, the vast majority of whom where Elder alumni. There were construction workers, engineers, police officers, firefighters, doctors, members of the armed forces, and even a caterer and a priest.

One of the event’s most notable guests was Judge Patrick Dinkelacker, Elder class of 1972. A proud Elder alumnus, he says “It is always great to return to Elder for any occasion, but it is especially nice to be a part of Career Day.”

According to junior Julian Gregory, Career Day is an important asset that students have at Elder. He explains, “I think that is reasonably important since students usually have no clue what they are going to do with the rest of their life. Even if we sometimes don’t take it seriously, it may influence our decision.”

As crucial as Career Day can be, some students, such as senior Andrew Price, are still largely undecided. Despite being intrigued by the doctors, policemen, and pilots, Price says “I unfortunately have a lot of interests…so finding a career I would like to do for the rest of my life is quite challenging.”

With the wisdom of a judge, Judge Dinkelacker gives his advice:

“With the support Elder students have and the education they receive at Elder, the sky is truly the limit. It is difficult to know as a junior or senior what career life’s path will follow. I think it is good to check into areas of interest and things like Career Day help.”