Graduating senior Johnny Allen finds joy in the tedious task

Don't try and put Johnny Allen in a box, even if it's one he welded himself.

Allen, a senior at Wrangell High School, is upfront about his values. He gets up early, works hard, doesn't complain and quietly goes about his business. He finds joy, not just reward, in work that other people might only see as tedious, something that shines through in his choice for a senior project.

For that, Allen has taken it upon himself to freshen up the whale mural outside the Stikine Inn. The painted mural is about the size of a shipping container and it's desperate for a new coat of paint. Allen will solve that problem.

"I like doing tedious stuff that requires a lot of attention to detail," Allen said. "I thought it would be a perfect project.

He intends on simply replicating the whales - "freshen them up," as he put it - but Allen isn't backing himself into a corner. If he's working on the mural and finds some inspiration, he said he'll let himself take a few creative liberties if it seems reasonable.

School counselor Ann Hegney connected him with some folks from The Marine Service Center who are supplying Allen with painting supplies. Now, he just needs to wait for a sunny (and not too cold) day to complete the project.

For those who know Allen, this project won't come as a much of a surprise. He likes to keep busy, to build and to make things. For Allen, the process of the task is itself enough motivation to begin the task in the first place.

This is far from the first large task he's taken on by himself. A frequenter of the school's shop classroom, he's currently working on a fuel tank welding project that he intends for personal use. Two years ago, he constructed a flatbed for a truck.

When asked why he enjoys shop class so much, Allen was certain in his response.

"Because of the freedom," he said. "The freedom you have to do whatever you want. You almost choose your own curriculum in shop."

And it's this freedom that Allen is chasing after graduation. He hopes to attend the Alaska Vocational Technical Center in Seward and receive an industrial welding certification. Concurrently, he also aims to obtain a commercial driver's license, which would allow him to drive truck.

"You get paid to just drive around. I like driving around," he said. "It's perfect!"

Allen's goal is to work in the welding industry initially, but later possibly pivot to truck driving. He realizes that welding isn't exactly easy on the body, and he wants to have a backup option that he's sure to enjoy.

As for where - geographically - Allen wants to live, he's got his sights on Montana or Wyoming. He doesn't like feeling boxed in, and living on an island is not something he sees himself doing long term.

"It just feels like I can't get out if I want to get out," he said, "to experience what it's like in the 'big world.'"

But other than this feeling of freedom, Allen doesn't want much.

"I don't want too extravagant a life," he said. "There's never going to be an extravagant enough life. You're going to want to keep on making more money, getting a better job. There has to be a limit somewhere. Otherwise, you're always going to want more and more and more."

But until then, if you're trying to find Allen, he's probably in one of two places: the school's shop classroom or in the front seat of his car, driving around the island, listening to Smashing Pumpkins or Three Doors Down.