MILWAUKEE — As a group of women pick up red hot metal and prepare to bend it at the Makerspace in St. Francis, you might never know they’ve only been practicing this skill for six months.
Anna Kirch says she never could have imagined trying this back when she was in high school.
“I was told that the welding class was for boys, and so I dropped it,” she recalls.
And even as they started diving into projects, this group of ladies was still a little unsure.
“They were literally scared of the machines!” says Sarah Davitt. “Like, the welder would go off and they’d jump.”
Sarah Davitt – also known as Hapto – is the co-founder of the group. They call themselves the Steel Tiger Lilies.
“It’s made basically, 90%, by people who have had no experience fabricating or welding prior,” Hapto says.
Hapto partnered up with Jen Janviere – who does have a lot of welding experience. Jen says when she worked on construction sites, she was often surrounded by men.
This group was going to be different.
“It’s about letting them know that they can own their own power and they are welcome in this space and they can be part of it,” Jen says. “And they have every right to be here, just like the guys do.”
For the past few months, the Steel Tiger Lilies have been welding – growing – a tree.
“Some of the welds are kind of messy, but that’s okay because they will hold themselves up,” Hapto says. “We’re not building bridges here – well, we’re building bridges, just metaphorically.”
Bridges of friendship and confidence – the tree has become a metaphor for how far the Steel Tiger Lilies have come.
“Down below is all the sort of rusty metal and then it gets shiny, and it gets colorful, and it becomes more neon and then it becomes this [whole] thing!” Hapto describes.
It’s a feeling Hapto has a hard time putting into words.
“Just seeing this come to life, all these different ideas breathed into one piece, it’s just amazing, that collaboration,” she says.
If only Anna Kirch’s school teachers cold see her now.
“It’s awesome,” Anna says. “I mean, I look at it and I’m just so proud.”
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