LIVE OAK, Fla. — The Arc of North Florida’s Job-A-Palooza packed the Suwannee County Coliseum on Wednesday.

More than 50 ESE students from Suwannee and Columbia counties attended as well as 21 businesses to provide job skills trainings for those students in attendance.

“The whole purpose was about job skills,” said Quinn Ban, the fundraising coordinator at the Arc.

The event was a success for both the students in attendance and the business partners.

Zack Winans, a Suwannee High ESE student, said he enjoyed the event and learned a number of things, like mixing chemicals at the Live Oak Pest Control booth and learning CPR from Suwannee County Fire Rescue.

However, Winans’ favorite booth was the Initially Yours booth of Kathleen Townsend where Townsend discussed and displayed the bed rolls she makes for the homeless.

“I like the sewing, taking a product and making something new out of it,” Winans said.

Jon Little said all the students that stopped by Suwannee Valley Electric Cooperative’s booth seemed to be enjoying themselves and the task of putting bolts together.

“We have a history of supporting this organization,” Little said. “The thing that was cool about this is we got to meet some of the kids that we support.

“They seemed to like it and they’re all really good at it too.”

Among those that have benefited from that support is Kelly Klingensmith, one of the Arc’s clients. Klingensmith spent Wednesday’s event running her own booth, showing students one of the jobs she performs at the Arc: packing gift boxes for local dealerships Wes Haney Chevrolet and Walt’s Live Oak Ford to send to customers that purchase vehicles.

“There was a lot of people,” Klingensmith said.

Added Barbara Sinawa, from the Arc: “She loves doing this and she loves earning the money doing them. So she wanted to come out here and show others that you can still work and still do things.”

Busy at her own booth, Klingensmith didn’t have time to visit the stations which included a “Dress for Success” closet with the Suwannee County Extension Office. Extension Director Katherine Allen said education is a big part of the UF/IFAS Extension’s mission and job skills, including job interview preparedness are part of education.

“We’re open to everybody,” Allen said about UF/IFAS Extension. “I think it’s always good to be a community partner.

“I guess I feel very strongly. I live here, I work here, I play here. Guess what? This is mine. This is where I live. This is my home, so I think it’s important to be part of the community.”

The Arc of Florida wrote a grant application for the event, which Vocational Rehabilitation then funded.