SUMTER, S.C. — Preparations are underway right now for tomorrow’s eSTEAM Festival in downtown Sumter. With thousands of people expected to come out for the event, hosts are setting up.
“Overall just for the well-being of Sumter, it’s a great thing,” resident Jason Browder says about the event.
Browder works with Thompson Construction, which is one of the 92 exhibitors providing hands-on activities for children and families at Sumter’s eSTEAM Festival.
“I’ve lived in Sumter my entire life, I don't think there's any event that I have seen here that draws the…just the diversity across our community from all different sides of the community. Just brings people together,” Browder shares. “All ages, all walks of life, you know, people come in, we gather together, and so it's really good.”
“The purpose of it is to grow our workforce,” Erika Williams, the festival manager, explains. “We want to pour into our people, which is key for us.”
Williams works with The Link Economic Development Alliance, which is hosting the event. She tells me this festival aims to expose local kids to science, technology, engineering, art and math, which can then translate into a career.
“There are nationwide labor shortages and we believe in planting those seeds so that we can provide an excellent workforce not only for our existing industry, but also as we continue to recruit global industries in our area,” Williams details.
“The hands-on, the skill craft positions are becoming more and more valuable,” Browder agrees.
As Williams and her team work to set up a stage, organize T-shirts, and hang up signs ahead of the event, exhibitors like Browder are getting their stations ready. For Thompson Construction, event attendees will see what it’s like to sit on construction equipment.
“You ride down the interstate and there’s construction equipment, you ride by buildings that are benign construction and there’s all this equipment, but what does it actually feel like to sit on it?” Browder poses. “Sitting on it and having that perspective I think is…just little things like that, who knows might ignite an interest? They’ve played with dump trucks, maybe in the sandpit, but now they get to come out and actually sit on a piece of equipment that’s used in the real world.”
In addition to the hands-on STEM activities, there will be live performers and other elements to highlight art.
“A lot of the soft skills that we need are interpersonal activity, for building relationships that's found in the art, the performing arts,” Williams explains. “It is found in traditional art in terms of on the canvas, where you can be expressive and so that helps to build those soft skills that we often lack or need to develop our nourish
The eSTEAM Festival is free and open to the public. There will be a registration process at the event’s entrances, where attendees can get wristbands to help in case children get separated from their guardians.
There will also be shuttles to help transport people to the even. which is happening on Saturday from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.
“There’s a communal spirit that is always here in the area of downtown Sumter. So we're excited about it,” Williams smiles. “And we trust that others are excited as well.”