Theo Hill joins Chelsey to talk about his transition from full-time Hockey player in the OHL to his current Internship in OFNTSC's Infrastructure Service.

Listen in and learn about Theo's influences on his route to a career at OFNTSC and his advice for youth thinking of entering the technical field.

Transcript - provided by Podium

00:05 - Chelsey (Host)
hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of OFN TSC's technically speaking podcast. As always, I'm your host, chelsea Johnson, and today I'm so excited to be joined by Theron Hill, one of our new youth infrastructure interns. So we're going to get to know Theo a little bit better over the course of the podcast, as well as talk to him about how he got interested in pursuing a technical career and basically learn what you can do to help youth navigate into these kinds of fields. So, theo, would you mind saying hello and giving us a little bit of background on your background?

00:49 - Theo (Guest)
Hi, I'm Theo. I go by Theron as well. You know, I kind of grew up in Six Nations, Kind of always kind of started with hockey and that kind of thing. But yeah, it's kind of all to my story. But yeah, I'm a good hockey player.

01:04 - Chelsey (Host)
How did you get into hockey, like, from what age did you start playing hockey?

01:08 - Theo (Guest)
I would say, as soon as I can remember, I've, or even walked. I was in skates and I went on the pond with my dad, so that was a big part of my life growing up.

01:16 - Chelsey (Host)
And then how did you progress? Like, I know, I know you've played hockey, but like, at what levels did you play Like hockey? But like, at what levels did you play like?

01:25 - Theo (Guest)
how did you progress in your like hockey career to get to where you were? So I actually I started in six nations uh, probably around I would say four and um, from a young age I knew right away that I was pretty good. So I'd say probably at around 12 my dad thought it was a good opportunity for me to make the jump to Brantford AAA and that was really good for me to really hone in my skills and kind of get looks where you don't get them as much on Six Nations, so just to have that extra couple views from scouts and agents and stuff like that. It really took off from there.

01:58 - Chelsey (Host)
I see, and then. So you played like all throughout high school, and then did you go to post-secondary for hockey as well.

02:09 - Theo (Guest)
We did, like our high school team did have hockey as well, and actually we won all of Ontario in grade 10. So that was kind of cool. But, oh my gosh, yep. Um, after I started my AAA career in Brantford, I was lucky enough to get drafted at the age of 16 and then, from that point on, I uh, I got to move to Sarnia Sting forgive me, because I'm not a big sports person when you say drafted like, drafted by who to who to where?

02:35
so the? Uh? Yeah, the OHL has a draft every year and they just pick kids that are under the age of 16, that are, uh, good enough to play on their team.

02:42 - Chelsey (Host)
Oh, wow, yeah, wow that.

02:44 - Theo (Guest)
Yeah.

02:44 - Chelsey (Host)
Wow, that's pretty cool and can you share with us like what you find about sports. That's like very like exciting, or what drew you into like sports, you would say initially.

02:57 - Theo (Guest)
I would have to say it's probably like growing up as a kid and seeing your favorite people on TV and the fans and in the stadium, and you kind of want that for yourself, right? So it's hard not to see those things and not chase after them.

03:11 - Chelsey (Host)
Yeah, for sure. And then how did you decide to shift into what you're doing now, and can you tell us a little bit about what you are doing now at OFNTSC?

03:21 - Theo (Guest)
Right, yeah, so through this, I guess the first step was I got out of hockey and I kind of had like a little self-identity crisis where I didn't know what I was doing or who I was, kind of thing, and I was a little, like I would say, a little depressed.

03:37
But you know, it's just, it's time to move on and look for something different. I actually, in between each summer, I actually grew up on a farm, so through that I got to experience a lot of hands-on work, which I really loved, like framing, welding, electrical stuff, plumbing, all this kind of stuff, and it really gave me a chance to like experience things and not have to jump in them fully and still be able to try different things, and I really appreciate that from my grandparents. So through that I ended up, and then my sister working here too, that was a big help for me to, and she said they had an opportunity through infrastructure and she knew how much I enjoyed framing. So, yep, she told me to apply for it and, lucky enough, I got the job and here I am now.

04:20 - Chelsey (Host)
That's awesome. So what is your exact title here at OFNTSC?

04:24 - Theo (Guest)
So I'm an infrastructure specialist intern and I basically just job shadow through the guys and try to pick up different things and be a sponge and just soak up all their information.

04:34 - Chelsey (Host)
Nice and I know you've been working with Nathan Hill. He was actually our first podcast guest and I know that Nate actually started out as an intern at OFN TSC. Did he tell you that?

04:47 - Theo (Guest)
Yeah, he did, that was cool.

04:49 - Chelsey (Host)
Yeah, I feel like that is like, honestly, one of the coolest like full circle moments that, like Nate started out as an intern and now he's, you know, worked his way up throughout the organization and he's now, I think it's the infrastructure lead or some supervisor yeah so, and now he's training a new intern yeah, he makes those jokes about passing the torch.

05:12 - Theo (Guest)
So it's, it's funny to to be with him and you know he's a great teacher too.

05:15 - Chelsey (Host)
I think that's so cool, yeah, so what kind of stuff are you learning? Like? What do you um study? You have to study. I know you've been doing exams and stuff like that, so how's that process been?

05:26 - Theo (Guest)
it's been good. Um, it's mainly all through the Ontario building code and it's just, uh, like you said, a lot of studying and it's. These exams are through Humber College as well, so a lot of reading, a lot of writing and stuff like that. But yeah, it's been really good you're enjoying it yeah, I love learning new stuff all the time, so it's good it it's always new stuff.

05:43 - Chelsey (Host)
Very cool. Yeah, are there any skills that you've realized that have transferred over from like your sports career into this new career?

05:51 - Theo (Guest)
I would say through being on the job site, I think a lot. You have to be very good with people, skills and that kind of thing and especially working in the infrastructure team. There's probably a group of 10 of us Working in the infrastructure team. There's probably a group of 10 of us. I would say the skills I took from hockey, like you know, everyone kind of trying to achieve the same goal and helping each other to find that success and that transferred over a lot when I'm working with the same group of guys all the time, Like being part of a team, that kind of atmosphere, yeah for sure, and that's been a big key, I think, for how easy it is for me to come into this role.

06:25 - Chelsey (Host)
Nice and have you faced any like big challenges so far, kind of transitioning from a sports field into like a technical career?

06:35 - Theo (Guest)
A little bit, like I could say. There's a couple of times I've found myself lost in the computer and not knowing where to go.

06:42 - Chelsey (Host)
And then you show up at my office Chelsea.

06:45 - Theo (Guest)
how do I fill out this?

06:46 - Chelsey (Host)
travel claim.

06:48 - Theo (Guest)
That's funny, but it's a process and I'm getting there, so it's good yeah.

06:52 - Chelsey (Host)
I mean, those are the kinds of skills that take time. You know, when you're young you have to learn all these programs and software and then by the time you're my age, it's like you don't even realize how much you do know. Yeah, so the infrastructure team like you were mentioning, there's like 10, around 10 infrastructure specialists, something like that, but they're spread out all across like Ontario, and I know there's a lot of traveling involved. How are you finding that aspect of the job?

07:22 - Theo (Guest)
I actually I kind of enjoy it and it's actually another reason why I wanted this job as well. It's coming from being in the OHL. I was on the road like probably four days a week playing games in cities all over Ontario, so it kind of gave me a little glimpse. But I didn't hate it because you got to see stuff in other cities and that kind of thing and be in other communities, which I really appreciate. So definitely the travel drew me into this job for sure.

07:48 - Chelsey (Host)
What kind of communities have you been to so far?

07:50 - Theo (Guest)
So right now I've only been to Walpole, new Credit and Six Nations. But yeah, those are just the local ones.

07:58 - Chelsey (Host)
So you're kind of used to traveling for your sports and then now traveling for this is kind of more of the same and you enjoy that aspect of it, yeah definitely. What are some of the other aspects of the job that you really are drawn to and things that you might think, like other youth might find surprising or interesting about this kind of job?

08:17 - Theo (Guest)
Just I appreciate just being in Native communities. It's not something, and a job in a Native community, I think, is pretty outstanding. I just I enjoy working with people. That that you know, you're familiar with, and that in itself is just better than any other any other job, I think so.

08:36 - Chelsey (Host)
Yeah, like doing work that's helping our communities and your communities and just being with the people. You're with homeowners all the time, like that just itself is, and seeing their faces on sometimes and getting like getting stuff done that they need done is is pretty fulfilling nice, that's awesome, and can you elaborate a little bit more maybe on what you were talking about, how you like helping them out, seeing the smiles on their faces like what? What are the? What role does the infrastructure specialist job have in helping to build communities?

09:08 - Theo (Guest)
I think the the main goal is they're just trying to keep everyone safe and healthy and the houses that they're living in has, you know, good, clean water and all this stuff and those are necessities, right. So that's something that shouldn't go unwritten, and just to be able to be on a team like that and help these communities is kind of nice.

09:29 - Chelsey (Host)
That's awesome. No, that's really cool. And I know here, at like OFNTSC, we also have our technical youth career outreach program where we're trying to help encourage more First Nations youth to like enter some of these fields, like the housing infrastructure specialists that you're entering. So I'm curious to hear if you have any advice for someone who's considering switching into like a career like this, or just what would you tell somebody who's thinking about becoming an infrastructure specialist?

09:59 - Theo (Guest)
I'd say just or anything in this company is just go for it, especially for youth that are indigenous as well. Like, just jump for it. This is a great company, great opportunity just to, or anything. Really just get yourself involved and work hard and try your best for sure.

10:18 - Chelsey (Host)
And then, is there anything that you think that either, like we as OFNTSC or communities, can do to kind of promote these technical careers for youth?

10:32 - Theo (Guest)
I'd say like, maybe reaching out at like you get a lot of youth at like sporting events, schools, stuff like that, like that would be a great opportunity to really get the youth and get their attention and kind of hammer down some of these ideas for some of them, because the more education you get on the reserve it'll just be everything will just be better for everyone.

10:54 - Chelsey (Host)
I find that sometimes it's like these careers are so like abstract that it's hard to kind of get across like what it is actually that you'll be doing and how important these roles are within the communities. So we were actually we did go to Little NHL and try to promote it. Have you ever played at Little NHL?

11:14 - Theo (Guest)
Yeah, I've played many years there and had a great time every year.

11:18 - Chelsey (Host)
It was really fun. Yeah, jordan and I both went and we had a booth and we tried to promote these types of careers and we found it was really at least me speaking for myself I found it to be very inspiring to see all these youth coming together in a very positive way. I think I didn't grow up playing sports, so to realize later in life how uniting sports can be has been really eye-opening for me, so that's awesome. Uh, were there any other like careers that you were like interested in, maybe before you, like dove into infrastructure specialists?

11:55 - Theo (Guest)
there. There were other careers actually. I, I, uh. I attended six nations polytech. I was. I wanted to do some welding like I was. I've set on being a welder there for a bit.

12:03 - Chelsey (Host)
Madison went there too. Yeah, that's funny.

12:07 - Theo (Guest)
Yeah, but I was set on being a welder and unfortunately I just didn't. It wasn't the right fit for me and I kind of, as soon as I dropped out of that, I kind of was leading more to the framing side again, which obviously led me to the infrastructure. So it's cool.

12:24 - Chelsey (Host)
Do you find it like would you prefer to be more hands-on? Because I feel like the infrastructure specialist role you're not necessarily like actually framing or doing building construction stuff like that, more so like inspecting the buildings, right. So how do you find that in terms of what you like?

12:38 - Theo (Guest)
so actually my brother-in-law he's the one that kind of got me into the framing. He owns a, a framing business and what I liked about the framing is you can just kind of it's hard work, you're hurting your back all the time, but it's fulfilling too, very rewarding work. But you're only working with wood all the time right, so it can get kind of boring. The thing with the infrastructure is you're looking at every single component of a house and that is a lot in a general whole. It's a lot to learn and you know you're not just stuck in one thing. If you want to go somewhere else, you can go look at like plumbing if you want for a bit or something.

13:12
Right and switch it up, so I appreciate that too. So that's good.

13:15 - Chelsey (Host)
And I'm assuming there's different issues that you'll see as well Like there's always gonna be something different where you're like, hey, this needs to be fixed, or you need to update this piece, or there's missing something here, so it's not the same every day. Right, okay, very cool. And then did you have any role models? I know you mentioned Nathan a little bit, how he's kind of taking you under his wing and he's like passing the torch on, but even throughout your sporting career, we are working on building a mentorship program and launching that soon. So is there any, like you know, mentor relationship that you'd like to to talk about and share?

13:55 - Theo (Guest)
um, well, I'd say well, I gotta probably shout out my mom a bit. She's always been the best mentor for me, um, and just, she always stressed on me, right, having that plan b option, because with life comes so many like uncertainties, right, and you never know, and it's better to be prepared than not be prepared. So, and another role model, I guess, was probably my older siblings, right? Um, I had an older brother, actually Tyler, who played in the OHL as well, so he's probably seven years older than me, and I was kind of always trying to chase him, you know, and be better than him. And you know, maddie had a very good rugby career too as well, at York for a bit.

14:30 - Chelsey (Host)
I didn't know that. That's awesome.

14:32 - Theo (Guest)
Yeah, she was very sporty too and, like I said, her going to university does us all off the charts, so I try and chase in her too, so it's good.

14:42 - Chelsey (Host)
Are you the youngest of your siblings?

14:43 - Theo (Guest)
I'm right in the middle Two younger, two or three older. So you have like the older ones to chase and also the younger ones to be also a role model for them right, exactly, they'll be chasing me next.

14:54 - Chelsey (Host)
That's awesome. And what about Nate? Has he been a good mentor and what have you learned from Nate so far?

15:01 - Theo (Guest)
He is. He's probably one of the smartest guys I know now. He's just full of a lot of information and you know, just to be able to sit with him and you know, talk and he answers all my questions all the time. So it's just, I don't know he's. He's one of the best teachers I've had in my life, I think so it's good, so cool.

15:20 - Chelsey (Host)
Yeah, I still love that full circle moment thing, like that's just really funny. And then, like, looking ahead, like I know you're pretty young, you're in your like early 20s, I'm somewhere around there um, like, what are your, what are your hopes for the future?

15:37 - Theo (Guest)
um, I'm not too sure. I haven't tried not to one day at a time.

15:40 - Chelsey (Host)
Yeah, I wish I could be one day at a time person for the, the future.

15:46 - Theo (Guest)
I guess it's just it's exciting to see where it takes me right. I want to, I always want to progress in the infrastructure side of things and in the company and and very, I guess, happy and open to see where that takes me and happy with how it happens.

16:02 - Chelsey (Host)
Nice, and yeah, so are you. What kind of projects are you currently working on? Because I know you're doing like the exams and what are you working on with your exams? And then, what are you working on like outside of the exams and stuff like that?

16:16 - Theo (Guest)
So yeah, it's like I said, it's all through this, it's like a big book with like 3000 pages and it's like all this Ontario building code.

16:23 - Chelsey (Host)
The building code, yeah, oh wow.

16:24 - Theo (Guest)
It's a lot of reading this stuff, but they're all split up into parts and each part has, like their own different exam, and so me and Spencer, the other intern, have just been, you know, helping each other studying hard and just kind of bouncing each other's off or bouncing ideas off each other, and, yeah, just trying to help each other out and get success together.

16:47 - Chelsey (Host)
How long will it take you to?

16:48 - Theo (Guest)
like reach, the certification that you need to get. I think there's 10 or so, 10 or maybe like 14 or something, but I think they only they want us to have like six or seven of them done within a certain time.

16:58 - Chelsey (Host)
Like chapters within that book. Yeah, oh, wow, okay, very cool. So other than that, I guess would you like to add anything else. You know, we might have some other youth listening, we might have some communities listening. But yeah, is there anything else you'd like to add today?

17:18 - Theo (Guest)
I don't think so. I think, that's it.

17:20 - Chelsey (Host)
Okay, awesome. Well, thank you so much for being our guest today and sharing your message. I think it's just really positive to see what you're doing. I'm always so happy to see young people who are kind of working their way up into the technical careers, and that's what we're really trying to build here at OFN TSC is that future technical career workforce for the communities. So I'm really excited to see where you go and where you take everything and, yeah, hopefully stick around for a really long time.

17:50 - Theo (Guest)
Thanks, Theo Bye.

17:55 - Chelsey (Host)
Thank you so much, everyone, for listening to the podcast today. If you'd like to follow OFNTSC, we are on Facebook, twitter, instagram and LinkedIn at OFNTSC. Also, feel free to check out our website, ofntscorg, and stay up to date with all of the latest news and information. Until next time, take care, yeah.