Motor Trader Dec 18 / Jan 19

Left: Jack Goodrich with Melissa and Ben Twidale
Below: Jack with his dad Tony and fiance Chandni
Zuiderduin, his MTA Institute trainer.
“During his training, for example, he
would always be one step ahead. When
I opened new units, he would work on
them so that when I came back to do the
training on those units, he already had
good basic knowledge of the subjects and
we needed to just tune the finer points.
“He was a terrific student - passionate
about learning and very enthusiastic.
The training sessions were something he
looked forward to and that made my job
very easy.”
While Jack may not yet be convinced
that he deserved the Apprentice of the
Year win, there’s no doubt he was an
outstanding apprentice and is a damn
good bloke. The evidence of that was
clear at the Industry Dinner when,
after hearing about the work of MTA
Queensland’s charity partner Youngcare,
Jack promptly donated his $2000 prize to
the organisation.
It was an act of generosity that made
more than few jaws drop.
“I didn’t think that I really needed it,”
said Jack. “Youngcare do a lot of really
good work, and I thought it would go a lot
further with them than it would with me.
It just made sense - it wasn’t my money in
the first place and I wasn’t expecting it, so
why not give it to someone who really
needs it?”
While the donation was accepted,
MTA Queensland did ensure that Jack
received $1000 to help him celebrate his
award win in style.
So, what happens now? Well, there’s a
wedding to organise, and with his fiancé
Chandni securing new employment in
Stanthorpe, a move is also on the cards
in the new year.
It’s a tough call for Jack to make – the
family-like environment at Twidale will
be missed - but life goes on and the move
may be a spur to more training.
“Mel and Ben have been very good to
me and I want to give them as much as
I can before my wedding in February
when I leave,” said Jack. “I don’t have a
job organised in Stanthorpe yet, but I
would love to find a work as a mechanic
or possibly even in a new trade – I’ve
always been interested in the electrical
side of things, as well as paint and panel.”
Whatever direction he ends up
taking, Jack will, said Zak, be a great
ambassador for the industry as his
career develops.
“Jack will succeed at anything he puts
his mind too,” he said. “The question
really is where does he want to go?”
26 | Motor Trader December 2018/January 2019