PALS En Route to Success demonstrates the power of mentorship

For Marshall Webb, a work placement experience with PALS En Route to Success in high school is what ultimately gave him the push and inspiration he needed to confidently chart his career course.

The Saint John native enrolled in the En Route program when he was a grade 9 student at St. Malachy’s Memorial High School in 2014. Today, as he has his Class 1 Licence and a career as a truck driver in his sights, Marshall says that he’s carried the encouragement of his En Route mentors and program leaders with him throughout his post-high school years.

Launched 14 years ago, PALS En Route to Success provides high school students at St. Malachy’s and Saint John High School with work placements at businesses across the city, including 10 J.D. Irving, Limited companies. The placements allow students to gain hands on experience and mentorship while earning credits towards their high school diplomas.

“The intention of the program is to give experiences to youth that may not otherwise have these opportunities,” said Kenneth Burchill, Director of Commercial Operations with CFM, the business that hosted Marshall’s work placement.

Burchill said Marshall was a prime example of what the En Route program can provide for local youth.

Through grades 9 to 12, Marshall worked at CFM both in the fabrication shop and the pump shop, building both skills and confidence as he learned the ins and outs of welding and metal fabrication.

“It was actually perfect because it gave me the opportunity to learn hands on in a blue-collar work environment,” Marshall said. “And to me, that’s how I got my work ethic. That’s how I am today, and that’s where everything started.”

Burchill said Marshall’s success lay not only in the mentorship he received as part of the program, but also in what he put into his experience himself.

Marshall stood out because he embraced the idea that he was part of a team, Burchill said, which opened the door to more opportunities as a few of the CFM welders took him under their wing. This eventually led to Marshall successfully testing for his Canadian Welding Bureau qualifications, becoming one of the youngest in Canada to do so.

“They give you the motivation. They’ll actually push you to do better,” Marshall said of his mentors. “They want you to succeed.”

But after graduating high school, Marshall drifted for a bit. Two to three years out, he still hadn’t gone back to school and hadn’t settled on a direction for his life. That changed, Marshall said, on the morning that he found a box in his closet with his PALS En Route to Success completion plaque.

“It flicked a switch in my brain,” Marshall said. “I sat in my room and looked at it and thought, ‘I did so well in this program and now I’m almost a full high school experience out.’”

The following year, Marshall was back in school, working towards his heavy equipment licence. Now he’s also almost finished his Class 1 Licence. He intends to stay in New Brunswick to work.

He credits the belief his CFM mentors and retired PALS High School Coordinator Susan Tipper instilled in him for keeping him driven towards his goals.

For Burchill, Marshall’s experience speaks to the importance of mentorship.

“They’re incredibly kind and generous mentors,” he said. “And it’s not just the one-to-one mentors. It tends to be a whole group that rallies around the youth and help support them one way or another.”

About PALS

Partners Assisting Local Schools is a community-based initiative co-founded by James K. Irving and the Anglophone South School District to support students and schools in New Brunswick. By fostering partnerships between businesses, educators and volunteers, PALS creates programs that address educational challenges and promote student success.