BREWER – Michael Kotredes and Dennis Marshman spent the early part of Groundhog Day trying their hand at the art of picture framing.

During their visit Friday to Bangor Frameworks, located in Maliseet Gardens in downtown Bangor, the two youngsters selected, measured and cut materials and built their own frames under the careful direction of their mentor for the day.

The 11-year-olds were among 30 fifth-graders from State Street School on Friday who became the first youngsters in Penobscot County to participate in national Groundhog Job Shadow Day. Though many others across the country devote Groundhog Day to forecasting what might occur during a single spring, job shadow participants were looking much further into the future.

According to area coordinator Lynn Hunt, a Brewer High School teacher and part-owner of a Bangor business, the one-day event coordinated by the Junior Achievement organization is aimed at encouraging volunteer mentors from across the nation to bring young people to work to show them what a job is like and how the skills they are learning in school now can be put into action in the future.

Most of the participants were pupils from Steve Bearor’s classrooms, though eight were members of the school’s student council.

In the Bangor-Brewer area, about a dozen workplaces opened their doors to offer pupils a variety of career-exploration opportunities in fields ranging from banking and insurance to law enforcement, firefighting and medical records.

Kotredes, who said he was leaning toward a career in sports or the military, built a frame for a photograph of a covered bridge he chose from a selection at the shop. Marshman, however, brought along one of his prized possessions – U.S. Rep. John Baldacci’s voting card.

“He gave it to me because I voted for my opponent in the student council elections,” Marshman said. His decision cost him a win in a tight election. The final tally was 11-10 in his opponent’s favor.

Jim Lardie, a frame shop manager, welcomed the chance to serve as a mentor. He said his father had done the same for him when he let Lardie tag along as he made his rounds as a salesman, sometimes logging more than 300 miles a day

“A nice thing about this [activity] is that it’s so hands-on,” Lardie said of frame making.

Dave Ellis, a part-owner of the business, agreed. “We wanted to give them something to do instead of having them watch over our shoulders,” he said.

Elsewhere in the area, Keegan Kilroy and Michelle Kaulfers received the red-carpet treatment at City Hall in Brewer. Karen McVey, the city’s new finance director, led the two on a VIP tour, with stops at the offices of the city manager, city clerk, code enforcement officer, city planner and tax collector, as well as the finance department.

The pupils also got a peek into the former jail cells – prisoners once were held at City Hall – that now house various city documents and memorabilia from the recent past, such as old signature stamps.

“They use computers a lot,” Kaulfers noted of the various functions of municipal government. She added that city staff used many of the skills she and her classmates are learning in school, including math, spelling and social studies.

Kilroy, who wants to be a lawyer and says he’s balanced his parents’ checkbook, could appreciate the work that goes into tracking 1,600 checks a month. He was not, however, a big fan of taxes.

“I don’t like taxes because they take away from your spending money,” Kilroy said.

“But we spend it back on you,” McVey pointed out.

Kayla Dunn and Tony Nevers spent the morning at the Brewer Police Department, where they interviewed police Chief Steve Barker about his job.

Dunn, whose father was a police officer in Orono, excitedly described how Sgt. Perry Antone taught her and Nevers how to dust for fingerprints and gather footprint evidence. They also tried on bulletproof vests in the chief’s office.

Though the actual shadowing took place on a single day, the career-exploration program involves preparation and follow-up work. In anticipation of their visits with area professionals, the pupils prepared resumes listing their credentials, including academic strengths, work experience and community service. They also prepared questions for their mentors. On Monday, they will discuss what they learned on the job.

Bearor said he believed the youngsters had gained some valuable insight during their time in actual workplaces.

“I think this will make school more relevant,” he said. “I think they were able to see what they can do today that will help them 10 or 15 years from now.”

Organizations that helped make the event possible included America’s Promise, the American Society of Association Executives, the National School-to-Work Opportunities Office and, locally, Junior Achievement of Maine and the Junior Achievement Council of Penobscot County. Hunt said many of the mentors were drawn from the membership of the Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce.