At first glance, welding might look like only sparks and steel. But for Caleb Childress, it represents something much bigger: discipline, opportunity, confidence, and a future he is literally building with his own two hands.
The May River High School senior recently earned second place in a prestigious welding competition hosted by Tulsa Welding School Jacksonville, competing against approximately 80 students from across the country. The competition centered on stick welding, one of the most foundational and widely used welding processes in the industry.
Caleb’s performance earned him scholarship opportunities, thousands of dollars in prizes, and national recognition in a field that is increasingly critical to America’s workforce.
But perhaps the most remarkable part of Caleb’s story is not simply what he has won. It’s the path that brought him there.
“I always said I was never going to be one,” Caleb said, referring to becoming a welder. “Then, sophomore year, I took my dad’s class because he’s the welding teacher here at May River, and I liked it from the competitions. I kind of was good at it. So now I’m doing it, and I’m looking to pursue it after high school.”
His dad is Brad Childress, a welder of 28 years who has dedicated his career not only to the trade itself, but to teaching students how welding can transform their futures.
Together, father and son represent more than technical skill. They represent a growing movement that is redefining skilled trades for a new generation.
More Than Sparks
To outsiders, welding may seem straightforward. According to Caleb, though, mastering stick welding requires precision, patience, and an understanding of the fundamentals that translate into every other welding discipline.
“Stick welding is probably the most common welding there is in the country,” Caleb said. “If you can master stick welding, you can master any other welding because you understand what a weld is supposed to look like and how to control the weld puddle.”
Stick welding is commonly used in pipelines, construction, repairs, and farm equipment – industries that keep infrastructure moving across the nation. From pipelines carrying gas across the country to structural repairs on heavy equipment, the work is everywhere, even if most people never notice it.
“Everything that’s metal that you see, it didn’t get stuck together by itself,” Caleb said. “It got stuck because somebody used their hands and welded it.”
The competition environment pushed those skills even further. Participating students were required to weld under pressure, often in uncomfortable and unfamiliar situations designed to simulate real-world job testing.
“One bad weld doesn’t define your whole competition,” Caleb said. “You learn how to perform under pressure and not let things get to you. That’s something that helps in life too.”
That mindset – resilience, composure, adaptability – is precisely what Brad Childress said he hopes to instill in every student who walks into his classroom.
“When we prepare students for competition, we create real-life situations here,” Brad said. “Competitions are naturally uncomfortable, so we make it uncomfortable here so when they get there, it feels normal.”
Building More Than Welders
Inside the welding program at May River High School, students begin with learning about safety, responsibility, and professionalism.
“We always start with safety,” Brad said. “Then tool recognition, how to correctly use the tools, and then they earn their OSHA 10 certification.”
From there, students progress through increasingly advanced levels of instruction, refining both the quality and efficiency of their work while exploring different industry pathways.
By senior year, instruction becomes highly individualized.
“We tailor them down to wherever they’re planning to work or go to school,” Brad said. “We prepare them for certifications or onboarding at a college.”
For Brad, teaching welding is about much more than metal fabrication. It is about helping students discover direction and purpose.
“He’s got a way about it where he can turn kids from being bad kids outside of school to having some hope in their future,” Caleb said of his father. “Welding has helped some of these kids become better people for their future.”
That impact reaches beyond the classroom and into the larger community, especially as skilled trades continue to face labor shortages nationwide.
Competitions like SkillsUSA and Tulsa Welding School’s scholarship events expose students to professional environments while helping them network with industry leaders, recruiters, and potential employers.
“It shows them self-discipline,” Brad said. “It teaches them how to act professionally in those environments, and there are tons of scholarship opportunities, as well as tools and equipment to prepare them for opening their own business one day.”
In Caleb’s case, those opportunities have been substantial.
According to Brad, Caleb has already earned about $48,000 in scholarships and nearly $10,000 worth of tools and equipment through welding competitions over the past two years.
“He’s won welding machines, helmets, torches, hand tools, power tools – everything,” Brad said. “He’s got enough equipment now that he doesn’t have to come out of pocket for tools to get started.”
A Family Trade
For Brad, watching his son succeed in welding carries a special kind of pride.
“I just want to say what an honor it is to do what I do and pass on my trade,” he said. “Not only to all these students, but to get to see my very own son come through my door, compete, certify, and now open up a welding shop – it’s just an honor.”
And Caleb isn’t stopping at competition success.
He and his twin brother are already preparing to launch their own welding and fabrication business in the Bluffton and Ridgeland area. In fact, according to Brad, they recently broke ground on the future shop site. Their instagram page has been set up and you can follow their progress @twinpalms_welding.
The brothers plan to focus on general welding services, repairs, metal fabrication, restoration work, and even custom artistic pieces.
“We do car restoring, chassis work, metal fabrication – a little bit of everything,” Brad said.
Caleb sees entrepreneurship as the natural next step. “There are so many different things you can do with welding,” he said. “You can own your own fabrication business, work pipelines, weld cars – there’s just so many areas you can go into.”
Though the company name has not officially been finalized, Caleb hints that it may lean into the twin-brother connection.
“It’ll probably be something along the lines of us being twins,” he said with a grin.
The brothers also hope to build a social media presence around the business, documenting projects and sharing videos of their work.
“It’ll help the morale of the shop,” Caleb said. “And people like seeing how things are built.”
The Future of Skilled Trades
As conversations continue nationwide about college debt, workforce shortages, and alternative career pathways, students like Caleb are helping reshape perceptions surrounding skilled trades.
For many years, vocational education was often viewed as secondary to traditional four-year college routes. Today, however, industries like welding, electrical work, HVAC, and advanced manufacturing are experiencing a growing demand for skilled workers – many offering lucrative salaries without the burden of massive student loans.
Tulsa Welding School’s Jacksonville campus, which hosted the competition where Caleb earned his scholarship, has become one of many institutions helping bridge that workforce gap.
“It was an incredible day showcasing the best and brightest young people competing in welding,” said Lisa Nucci, campus president at TWS Jacksonville. “We are proud of all who competed, the ones who placed, and especially our top two winners who earned scholarships to attend TWS Jacksonville.”
For Caleb, however, the greatest rewards may extend far beyond scholarships and prizes. Through welding, he has discovered confidence, direction, and purpose. “The biggest thing I’ve learned is how to communicate with others and perform under pressure,” he said. “That helps with everything in life.”
And perhaps most importantly, he has learned that success is built one weld at a time. “No matter how bad your first weld looks, eventually it’ll come out good,” he said.
In many ways, that philosophy applies not only to welding, but to life itself.
Editor’s Note: As we went to press, Caleb Childress reached out to tell us he had just placed third in the country for Welding Fabrication representing the state of South Carolina.