Gunsmithing

NRA Scholarship Recipients

Five gunsmithing students from Montgomery Community College were recipients of the National Rifle Association (NRA) scholarships from the NRA Foundation this year. The scholarships, totaling $3,600, were awarded to Kory Frye, Mark Gordon, Clark Poole, Aaron Sisco and Nathan Tally.

Kory Frye is a second-year gunsmithing student and this will be his second NRA scholarship. Originally from Portland, Oregon, he now resides in Southern Pines. Frye lived on a small farm where he learned that hunting wasn’t just for sport. “I grew up around guns,” Frye says, “and we ate what we hunted.” Frye says he always considered guns in the same manner as a hammer or a crowbar. “Guns were a part of your tools,” he says.

When he was 17, Frye joined the military because he believed he should serve his country before going to work. He ended up finding his niche and serving in the U.S. Army Special Forces for 29 years. Frye says he has been to 85 different countries, almost every state in the U.S. and has been on every continent but Antarctica.

A lifetime member of the NRA, Frye is philosophical when talking about his choice to learn gunsmithing.
“I guess I’m a traditionalist,” he says. “Sometimes guns get bad press. People can be bad, but guns aren’t bad.”

Frye says he did a lot of action shooting in the army, but now enjoys shooting for precision. He wants to get involved in the shooting sports, and says learning gunsmithing is an extension of that.

Mark Gordon is another second-year gunsmithing student and repeat scholarship recipient. Gordon grew up on a 1,200 acre farm in Wellington, Ohio. After high school he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps where he served as a helicopter mechanic for five years and served three tours of duty overseas, twice in Iraq.

While he was in boot camp, Gordon received the company’s high award for being the top shooter. Gordon says he had been interested in precision shooting since he was in high school when his uncle gave him an old reloading set-up. Gordon upgraded it and used it to experiment.

After serving in the military, he spent a summer apprenticing with a friend at Buckeye Sports in his home town. Gordon says it was this experience that made him decide to follow his dreams to get into a degree program in gunsmithing.

Gordon says his dad was the main mechanic on their farm. “He was always welding, building and designing; he was never satisfied with what was considered ‘the best.’” Gordon believes he has a lot of innovative ideas too, and wants to build his own custom firearms someday.

Kings Mountain native, Clark Poole is a first-year gunsmithing student who had over 100 hours of college credit under his belt prior to coming to MCC to study gunsmithing. Poole finally decided it was better to get a degree in something he loved doing.

While growing up in the mountains, Poole enjoyed target shooting with his dad. He also spent a lot of time building things taking them apart. He says he finally “put two and two together” and decided he’d like to design and build firearms.

Poole plans to get his gunsmithing degree and work for a firearms manufacturer to gain experience. Poole says he would also like to continue with his education and obtain a master of science in mechanical engineering. Either way, his dream job is to design militia weaponry, and he is taking his first step toward that end.

Aaron Sisco seems to have found his calling in gunsmithing. After a childhood of hunting and fishing with his dad, Sisco says it was an easy transition “from life to gunsmithing.” But the transition took many twists and turns before Sisco arrived at MCC. A native of New Jersey, Sisco currently calls St. Augustine, Florida home.

After high school, Sisco attended a community college in New Jersey and took architectural drawing and design classes for a semester. He decided that wasn’t for him so he tried plumbing for awhile.

Later, he moved to St. Augustine where he tried a number of jobs including working on charter fishing boats, building custom boat cabinetry, and finally bartending.

What he really wanted to do was something different, something hands-on, and something that would provide him with a good living. That led him back to his roots and his early interest in guns.

Now, Sisco says, “Gunsmithing is all I think about. It’s neat to find something I really like doing and I actually get to do it. Everything about it is exciting right now.” Sisco says he would like to apprentice for someone when he graduates, and doesn’t mind if he has to travel. “I have no plans, no agendas, no schedules,” he says. He’s just doing what he likes best – gunsmithing. Sisco is a second-year gunsmithing student and a second time NRA scholarship recipient.

Nathan Tally is a first-year gunsmithing student who hails from Jacksonville, NC. After graduating from Swansboro High School, Tally worked at a gun shop on base at Camp Lejeune. There, he became interested in guns and researched gunsmithing schools. A friend who frequently came into the shop had attended MCC and recommended the gunsmithing program to him.

Tally’s father is retired from the military. Tally was born in Kansas City, MO, but later moved to Hawaii where his father was transferred. He was only 4 years old when his family moved again to Jacksonville. Tally worked at the PX on base while he was in high school. He also did a lot of hunting and fishing while growing up.

Tally says he likes to build things and enjoys shooting. “Learning gunsmithing is the best of both worlds,” he says.

Tally would like to open up his own shop someday where he wants to build and repair firearms.

The NRA Foundation is a charitable organization which supports the shooting sports. Grants from the foundation benefit programs such as Montgomery Community College’s Gunsmithing program, which helps carry out the foundation’s educational mission.

For more information about the Montgomery Community College Gunsmithing Program or NRA Short-Term Gunsmithing, Knife Making and Armorer’s courses, call 910-576-6222, extension 234.