By Betsy Cohen, The Missoulian – Gary Bakke could do just about anything he wants, now that he’s retired from his Bakke Tire shop in

 Missoula, Mont.

But instead of going on cruises or playing golf, Bakke is elbow deep in grease in Sentinel High School’s automotive shop.

There, Bakke instructs and trains students for work in the tire industry.

It’s a hands-on class where students learn everything from wheel installation to wheel balancing to repairs to working with the various tools of the trade.

“I have a love of the industry, and after 38 years of experience I thought I had a lot of experience to pass on,” Bakke said during a recent session of the Power Tech 3 class he instructs with Thomas Leik, Missoula County Public Schools power technology Instructor.

“And I know when I was in business, I had a hard time finding entry-level trained personnel, and that’s what we are providing here,” he said. “The students that finish this class will be entry-level trained technicians.”

On completion of the class, students take the Tire Industry Association exam, which awards an entry-level certification that is recognized throughout the U.S.

“I’m so glad I took the course,” said Michael Johnson, a Big Sky High School senior who was in the first certification class Bakke offered last fall.

“I didn’t know anything about tires and I needed a job,” he said. “Now I have one.”

“It definitely increased my ability to get a job, and it increases my knowledge of what I am doing at my job,” said Johnson, who was recently hired for a part-time position with Tire Rama.

Not only is Johnson grateful for his new job, which he works about 24 hours each week around his school schedule, he’s thankful for Bakke’s mentoring.

“He really wants to help all of his students and he wants us to get this information down,” Johnson said. “This class really opened up doors for me and helped me find what I want to do with my career.”

If all goes according to plan, Johnson said he will work in the tire industry for a full year after graduation, save some money and then enroll at Missoula College to learn more about mechanics.

Cole Campbell, a Sentinel senior, is taking the class for fun.

As the class worked on mounting and balancing old tires from a combine machine, Campbell said he’s not sure if he will find work in the tire business after he gets his certification.

But he knows one thing for sure: “I have a bad history with flat tires, so I will really know what to do the next time I have that problem.”

For him, the class broadens his knowledge and helps make his spring semester all the more interesting.

“This class gives me life skills,” Campbell said, adding that he’s appreciative of the time and help Bakke has shared with the class.

“He gives his own time to us,” Campbell said. “He could be spending time with his own family, but he spends it down here with us – it makes me happy.”

The class is taught in partnership with Montana Automotive Technologies, a local automotive-based nonprofit that provides mechanical training to students in Missoula County Public Schools, said Leik.

All of the tire service equipment used in the class was obtained through donations Bakke helped secure, Leik said.

Of the first five students who took the class in the fall, five have earned their certifications, and seven students will be taking the exam at the end of April.

“The class has been a wonderful addition,” Leik said. “It’s a great opportunity for these kids and we are sending them out of here with something they can take to the workplace.

“Having Gary dive in and do this is absolutely wonderful, too,” he said. “Because of him, we’ve got 40 years of experience teaching these students.”

Bakke said he has been impressed with MCPS administrators who have supported his idea of a class from the beginning.

“It’s been a good experience,” Bakke said.

The most impressive part of getting the class going has been the students themselves.

“I have heard a lot of people who complain about young people these days – that they don’t have a work ethic, that they don’t want to get their hands dirty,” Bakke said.

“I found that to be a myth. This class starts at 1:45 p.m. and ends at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, and almost everyone is here at 1:30 p.m. every week, ready to go. These students are hard workers and they come in here wanting to learn.”