Hannah Vehkala

Hello! My name is Hannah, I'm a third year Mechanical Engineering student at the University of Waterloo.

I am from a small town called Sudbury, which is a part of Northern Ontario. As a northern girl, I love the snow and all things that come with it. Naturally, I grew up playing ringette, which is a female equivalent to hockey. Between all of my games and practices, as well as my brother's crazy hockey schedule, I practically grew up in arenas. I also love to ski and go skating in the winter months.  

More generally, I love to travel, spend time with my friends and family, and have the occasional lazy day cozied up with my cats. One of my more expensive hobbies is Lego, which will never bore me. I could build Lego all day and night, especially the Star Wars themed sets. I am a picture of a classic nerd, completely obsessed with Star Wars, Lego and 1000+ piece puzzles. I have also been baking for the past couple of years, and I will jump at any opportunity to try new recipes or make treats for others. I think this trait was passed on to me from my Mummu (my Finnish grandma), who loved to bake and would have fresh treats ready for every visit. My Finnish heritage is also a really big part of my life. One of my goals is to travel to Kokkola, Finland, which is where my Pappa immigrated from. I have been learning Finnish on and off incase the opportunity ever arises.

One of my newer interests was found in Process and Manufacturing Engineering. I worked as a stamping production engineering student on a recent co-op term, and I truly loved going to work each day. I liked the consistent unpredictability that came with the job. There were many occasions where I would go to work and find a new project daily. I was able to help the operators at each stage of manufacturing and production, as well as advance my AutoCAD and Solidworks skills. My favourite part of the job was being able to witness my hard work coming to fruition, as well as managing my own projects. I had the opportunity to design carts, jigs, and tools and see these projects to completion by contacting vendors and receiving the final product. It was gratifying to see my projects come to life, no matter how big or small.

For some more insight as to who I am, please see the photos below. They do a good job at describing me and the things I enjoy the most.

The most prominent question I get asked is why I chose to pursue mechanical engineering... the answer doesn't come quite as easily as you might think. I have always loved science and math, as well as working with my hands, but I had never really looked into the possibilities that came with those interests. My choice to pursue it is motivated by my love for learning and insatiable desire to understand how the world works.

I am only in my fourth year of university, but I feel as though I have learned a lot. As my degree progresses, I love the topics that I learn more and more. If you have completed an engineering degree, you would know that every day you need to make the choice to continue to work hard and pursue your studies. Especially as a University of Waterloo engineering student, we are pushed to our limits. But the reason I choose to pursue this degree is because I love it. I love seeing the different ways that mechanical engineers power the world, and I feel inspired by the possibility that I can contribute to that. I have also been challenged heavily as a woman in STEM, especially in mechanical engineering, so I feel a duty to disprove the stereotype that women don't belong, and will not succeed, in this field. 

I am excited for what is to come as I expand my knowledge and experience. So far, I have mainly worked in manufacturing and industrial settings, but I would love the opportunity to take on new challenges such as product design and potentially branch into the mining industry. I have developed a new-found passion for it over my last co-op. 

I would consider myself to be somewhat of a busy body, and am happy whenever I get the opportunity to make something with my hands. My most recent hobby is making blankets. Unlike traditional knitting, I don't use needles. It is mostly creating loops and weaving the yarn into itself. I made a small one that is highly enjoyed by my cat Milo, pictured below. 

Another one of my favourite pastimes is baking, as I mentioned above. I love to make bread, with a newfound passion for sourdough, as well pulla, which is a braided Finnish coffee bread. I enjoy trying new recipes, but I have been told that I am a master of gingerbread, snickerdoodle, and thumbprint cookies. Some of the recipes I would like to experiment with are various pastry-based recipes. Some of my other interests include building Lego, doing puzzles and diamond painting.

I love to give back, and if I can do this is a way that involves cats I'm sold! My roommate and I like to help the surrounding community by fostering cats that need loving homes before they find their forever home. We also help out at the animal shelter when we have some free time between our studies. I have also begun mentoring a younger mechanical engineering student at my school. I thought it would be nice to be there for someone who is new to such a busy environment, and hopefully guide them as my mentor guided me as a first-year. 

I also try to live an active lifestyle. I recently started playing ringette again, and I love to alpine ski and go to the gym with my roommate.

One of my biggest goals in life is to maintain my aptitude for learning. Over a past co-op term, I learned how to code in Python, and I am continuously learning how to speak and understand Finnish as well as Spanish.