Audrey Bauer, a freshman at Oak Hill High School in Wales, sprays water while wearing the turnout gear of Auburn firefighter Sita West during the Totally Trades conference for ninth-grade girls at Central Maine Community College in Auburn on Friday. Freshmen from area high schools attended workshops on automotive technology, welding, heavy equipment operation, building construction technology and firefighting. Bauer, Emma Therrien, left, and Adelle Surette, right, were given a hands-on lesson on what it’s like to be a firefighter. New Ventures Maine organized the conference. (Daryn Slover/Sun Journal)

Leavitt Area High School freshmen Shyla French, left, and Leonie Quimby learn how to remove a wheel and check an automobile’s brake pads from instructor Rodney Boynton during the Totally Trades conference for ninth-grade girls at Central Maine Community College in Auburn on Friday. Freshmen from area high schools attended workshops in firefighting, welding, heavy equipment operation, building construction and automotive technology to encourage female students to consider careers in fields traditionally dominated by men. Boynton is an instructor at the Lewiston Regional Technical Center. New Ventures Maine organized the conference. (Daryn Slover/Sun Journal)

Auburn firefighter Fred Haskell explains what takes place on a ladder truck during the Totally Trades conference for ninth-grade girls at Central Maine Community College in Auburn on Friday. Freshmen from area high schools attended workshops in areas such as automotive technology, welding, heavy equipment operation, building construction and firefighting to encourage female students to consider careers in fields traditionally dominated by men. McKenzie Brooks, far right, of Edward Little High School in Auburn, and Emma Therrien of Oak Hill High School of Wales were given a hands-on lesson on what it’s like to be a firefighter. New Ventures Maine organized the conference.  (Daryn Slover/Sun Journal)

Leavitt Area High School freshman Shyla French learns how to use a torque wrench during the Totally Trades conference for ninth-grade girls at Central Maine Community College in Auburn on Friday. (Daryn Slover/Sun Journal)

Lewiston firefighter Sam Mayo, right, helps Oak Hill High School freshman Adelle Surette put on turnout gear during the Totally Trades conference for ninth-grade girls at Central Maine Community College in Auburn on Friday. Freshmen from area high schools attended workshops in areas such as automotive technology, welding, heavy equipment operation, building construction and firefighting to encourage female students to consider careers in fields traditionally dominated by men. Mayo is the Lewiston Fire Department’s  only female firefighter. New Ventures Maine organized the conference. (Daryn Slover/Sun Journal)