Sutherlin graduate Garrett Edwards, who was a student from K-12, faced an unclear future when his senior year abruptly ended due to Covid-19. He had found high school challenging, particularly being young and trying to determine what occupation to pursue. This decision was thrust upon him earlier than expected when Oregon graduated all seniors in March because of the COVID shutdowns. As an active extracurricular participant, he also experienced the loss of his final baseball season and had to abruptly adapt to the impact the COVID shutdown would have on his FFA market pig project.
During his time in high school, Garrett learned key skills that would translate to any career: participating in FFA, soccer, wrestling, and baseball helped him become adept at working independently, collaborating as a team member, and managing time efficiently to finish projects and assignments in a timely manner. Being in a smaller community like Sutherlin allowed him to be a teammate alongside many of the same friends he grew up with, and he found that he appreciated the camaraderie of teams and the supportive but competitive spirit they generated. As an FFA member for four years, Garrett worked with pigs as his agricultural experience and worked with lambs for 4-5 years in 4-H. He enjoyed caring for the animals and learned about responsibility and earning money through hard work by selling those animals. His experiences in welding and woodshop courses taught him knowledge of basic skills in these trades, including the equipment and safety procedures. Dynamic course experiences, like learning to use a CNC router by cutting guitar bodies in the woodshop, helped him discover his enjoyment of hands-on activities.
As a young child, Garrett had thought about being an electrician. After graduating high school, with the encouragement of his family, Garrett explored various occupations. He worked with fiberglass and risers at Orenco for two years, then at Wright Tree Service, TerraFirma, and Comfort Heating. Each position allowed him to do the hands-on work he enjoys. Now, Garrett is putting his skills to work as a Smalley Sons & Construction laborer, operating the skid steer, roller, and small excavator and assisting the carpenters in their work. Having already known from his welding and woodshop courses that he liked working with equipment, he is now discovering that satisfaction also translates to working with bigger machinery.
Garrett resides in Sutherlin, and in his spare time he enjoys being active in the outdoors through deer hunting (in season), bass fishing, and exploring the Oregon Dunes in his ATV side-by-side.