A TAFE NSW Goulburn student and one of only a handful of female plumbers in the region has returned from a life-altering trip to Cambodia, part of a volunteer outreach effort that helped bring sanitation to some of the country’s poorest villages.
Maddy Tuchin, 24, from Bundanoon, travelled to the South-East Asian nation with the Reese Foundation, which works with volunteer tradies to fund and initiate projects that provide clean water and sanitation. Around 2.3 billion people globally live without easy access to water, according to the Foundation.
Ms Tuchin, who is studying a Certificate IV in Plumbing Operations, said the trip enabled her to use the practical skills she learned at TAFE NSW and on the job to help build toilet blocks and washrooms in poor rural communities.
“It was such a transformative trip; I thought I’d seen poverty before but this was on a whole new level,” Ms Tuchin said. “Seeing the difference we were making to young children and their families was incredible. It made me realise what a huge impact you can have on a person’s life through providing better sanitation.”
She said among the “goosebump moments” was forging bonds with a group of female villagers, who shared moments from their lives, braided her hair and even said she had become “like family” to them.
On top of the cultural exchange, Ms Tuchin said she learned priceless new skills during the trip.
“It was interesting watching how the other plumbers approached a job and conducted themselves,” she said.
According to Jobs and Skills Australia, only about 1 per cent of plumbers nationally are female and Ms Tuchin said she was proud to be one of the first generation of females blazing a trail in the industry.
“It’s great to be a trailblazer and the more other women see me in such a male-dominated industry, the more likely they are to want to join it,” she said. “Some of the comments were a bit uncomfortable when I first started the trade but it’s changing rapidly.”
She said the personalised learning support she received at TAFE NSW had helped her better navigate the more challenging aspects of her study.
“I’ve never had a TAFE NSW teacher who wouldn’t go over and above,” Ms Tuchin said. “I really struggled with the maths in the course and the teachers would spend extra time with me on it, showing me multiple ways to work a problem out.”
TAFE NSW Goulburn Head Teacher of Plumbing Andrew Whalan, who was part of a similar volunteer outreach trip to Arnhem Land last year, said TAFE NSW was uniquely positioned to give students practical skills to launch rewarding careers, regardless of gender.
“There are so many opportunities to make a difference in a rewarding plumbing career, and our skills-based courses allow students to hit the ground running and stay living and working in regional areas,” Mr Whalan said
