by Ben Overby
The Paducah Sun
December 5, 2025
LaDarius Flemons, a senior at Paducah Tilghman High School, plans to carry on the skills he’s learned at the Paducah Innovation Hub into a career in welding, hoping one day to become a master welder.
Flemons is this week’s Associated General Contractors of Western Kentucky’s Technical Centers Student of the Week.
Flemons was first introduced to the welding program in eighth grade after taking a tour of The Hub. He said the trades he was first drawn to were carpentry and welding, but the latter caught his attention more, especially after speaking with a close family friend in the trade.
Flemons said while welding might look simple to an observer, the challenge of the trade is what really made him fall in love with it. He said the classes pushed him and taught him lessons well beyond technical welding skills.
“They’ve taught me about being able to communicate with others because, while working of course, you have to communicate to others about what you’ve done and how you’ve done it,” Flemons said. “The classes also taught me about being comfortable in uncomfortable positions.”
Beyond the work itself, Flemons said one of the things that’s kept him invested in the classes is the people, both his peers and his teacher John Garland.
“He was really kind to me and helped me out a lot,” Flemons said. “He pushed me in situations when I was struggling, and it just really kept me with it. He cares a lot about the students. He’s a really amazing teacher. If there’s a time when you need help or when you need to talk to someone, he will be there for you. He also allows a lot of us to stay after school, and we can talk to him there. We could even do projects with him. So I would say he’s like a second dad, because he’s just really cool and he’s there for you all the time.”
Flemons said that his favorite project from the welding program is one he’s currently working on, making bedframes for homeless people. He said working on a project that’s directly helping people has been a rewarding experience.
“The biggest part about it is just knowing that it’s going to someone who needs it,” Flemons said. “That’s what I’ve mostly enjoyed about it. It’s going to someone who really needs it.”
Flemons is currently working his co-op job at Ingram Barge Company.
“I’m cleaning, of course, that’s a part of every job,” Flemons said. “But I’m also moving metal around and doing some welding as well. Because I’m just an intern, I’m not doing as much complicated stuff, but I am doing some welds and I just really like it there.”
Flemons said he may continue at Ingram past graduation, but also has ambitions of joining the Pipefitters Union and eventually becoming a master welder.
“I would love to be able to do any type of welding job, and just be able to do anything that anyone brings to me,” Flemons said. “So if they need a welding job done, if I could possibly learn how to do it in all types of welding, I would love to do that.”