Nathan McElroy enjoys a day at Fontana Lake in North Carolina while on vacation March 2024. (Photo provided by Nathan McElroy)

Nathan McElroy, 16, is looking forward to a summer of outdoor activities and traveling before heading into his senior year at the Washington County Career Center.

McElroy was born and raised in Marietta on a 100-acre farm complete with horses, bales of hay and acres of farmland. He said he and his dad enjoy deer and squirrel hunting on the property.

“At the moment, I plan on staying in the area, but that also depends on whether or not I join the military,” said McElroy.

McElroy has a few ideas on the direction he wants to go in life upon graduation next spring. He completed his first year at the Career Center in the electrical program and has aspirations to earn his certifications and join the local electrician union.

“Growing up, I was really close with my uncle, and he is a retired electrician, and from time to time he’d have a job that he’d need to do around the property and I’d help him,” he said.

Nathan McElroy plays soccer for Marietta High School during a game in Devola on Oct. 5, 2024. (Photo provided by Nathan McElroy)

McElroy said he’d help out with chores and electrical work and anything that needed done on the property.

“My junior year in the electricity program we focused primarily on residential wiring … so how to do basic residential work that would be anything you’d do in a house,” he said.

McElroy said the program started with the basics of electrical work and gradually increased into more complex and detailed projects.

“At the end of the year, we top it all off with one big culminating project,” he said. For the final project, the students work on a scaled-down version of a house and determine how they would wire the model house.

McElroy opted to attend the Career Center after visiting it during his sophomore year at Marietta High School.

Nathan McElroy poses for a photo in Cincinnati on May 24, 2025. (Photo provided by Nathan McElroy)

“Sitting in a classroom all day isn’t really ideal (for me),” he said. “I prefer being in the classroom for about an hour-and-a-half doing electricity classwork and after that I get to work with my hands for the rest of the day.

“I definitely enjoy working with my hands, and it provides me with an opportunity to not only do something that I enjoy but it’s helping me learn a really useful skill,” said McElroy.

He said the most interesting information he’s learned so far involved different code requirements for electrical wiring. Although he’s worked on a lot of basic electrical projects, his time at the Career Center so far has taught him more technical aspects of his work.

McElroy said he is leaning toward joining the military, but pursuing a career as an electrician would be his next option. He said the Career Center prepares the students for joining the electricians’ union, of which his teacher is a member.

Aside from his involvement in the program, McElroy has also been a student ambassador at the Career Center and plans to continue during his senior year.

Nathan McElroy with the Canton Akron United Force SC soccer club team at the Great Lakes Alliance regional league in Canton May 31. (Photo provided by Nathan McElroy)

“I really like the way the Career Center does things,” he said. “I want to be able to represent the school and give other people that opportunity to realize this might be something they want to do.”

McElroy has been involved in a few sports and clubs at MHS. He said during his sophomore year he was part of Interact Club, which focuses on local service projects and involvement.

“I remember specifically we went to the Ewing School around Halloween in our costumes and spent a day with the kids and played games,” he said.

McElroy said his mom signed him up for soccer when he was around first grade and he’s been invested in the sport ever since. He’s a member of the high school team and plays club soccer.

“It’s something that keeps me active, and it’s more than just something for me to do,” he said.

Nathan McElroy plays soccer for the Canton Akron United Force SC club in Canton on April 10. (Photo provided by Nathan McElroy)

McElroy plays for the Canton Akron United Force SC, a club team based in the Canton area. He said many of his friends from the high school team are also members of the club and carpool to practices twice a week.

With the regular high school soccer season and club season, McElroy plays soccer essentially year-round.

“We start as soon as soon as the high school season ends,” he said.

McElroy said he’s proud of how the season went this year because the club team won the regional league and advanced to play at a tournament in Chicago at the end of June.

“It was really cool to achieve that,” he said. “We won our first game and lost the other two, but we played some really solid competition.”

He said even though they didn’t advance past the tournament, the experience of playing in Chicago against teams from other states was fun.

McElroy joined the wrestling team at the start of his junior year, largely due to the desire to try something new. He said one of his soccer teammates had been trying to get him to join wrestling for a few years.

“I finally decided, ‘You know? Why not?'” he said. “I’ve never done anything like it. … I’m gonna say it is a lot harder than soccer.”

“I can’t say that I was very good, but I certainly plan on wrestling again this year,” he said.

While McElroy rests from sports and school for the summer, he has a few exciting trips planned. He recently visited California with his mom and will be flying down to Guatemala with his dad in July.

“We have friends down there, and we’re going to do some hikes,” he said. “We’re hiking up a volcano.”

Amber Phipps can be reached at aphipps@newsandsentinel.com