Dan Turner, a student in the Fire Academy Class No. 39, builds a fire truck, makes a friend.

Collin College fire science students learn the tools of the trade -- how the equipment works, how it can utilized to save themselves and the lives of others. Like fire trucks.

On Oct. 6, fire science students got a building-block lesson on fire trucks, particularly, how to build a wooden one with the help of a bunch of five-12 year olds.

Fire Academy Class No. 39 helped children build wooden fire truck at a McKinney Home Depot as part of the store’s Kids Workshops. More than 150 fire truck kits were assembled.

“Most of all, it was inspirational, watching the kids try to figure out the design and how the blocks fit together and seeing their minds work,” Philip Zurek, a 29-year-old fire science student, said.

Once finished, the children received a certificate of completion and the finished truck. Collin College students like Dan Turner went home with a lighter heart.

“It was a unique experience. They were shy at first, but when you started working with the tools, they opened up and starting telling stories,” Turner, 25, said. “I just tried to keep up.”  

Turner added that it was neat to see children who had completed other Kids Workshops assignments -- when children finish assignments, they attach a pin to their work apron indicating as such.

“It was a great opportunity for our students to experience the value of giving back to the community. Fire academy students had an opportunity to interact with the children teaching them about fire safety, and stressing the importance of having a home escape plan to parents,” Pat McAuliff, Fire Science program director, said. “The children were in awe of the fire academy students and will longer remember the time when a firefighter helped them build a fire truck.”

Students participating from Fire Academy Class 39 were Chris Holloman, Terry Pressler, Philip Zurek, Wesley Southard, Kyle Hutchings, Jonathan Laws, Luca Bagley, Corey Jones, A.J. Nouri, Jimmy Colleran and Dan Turner.

“There’s a lot of heritage with firefighters and the community. It’s been going on for a long time,” Zurek said. “Everyone knows someone who’s been helped by a firefighter at some point. All in all, the respect comes from the persona the firefighter exudes -- good guys who work hard for the community and to ease people’s minds.”