Crist Morillon fell in love with taking things apart and putting them back together at a young age. She fondly remembers a yard sale toy that helped ignite her passion for mechanical things. “I have this one memory of this toy. It wasn’t a Lego, but it was like a little thing you would put together with balls and slides. It was incomplete because I got it a yard sale,” she explains.
“But I remember loving that thing because I would just do whatever I needed. You know, create different things for the ball, which would go in circles and stuff,” Morillon says. “So that’s kind of my core memory, where I remember liking to take things apart, put them together, but also kind of create something new.”
Learning how things work had been part of her life from a young age. Immigrating to Phoenix, Ariz. from Durango, Mexico, she had to learn how to shift gears rapidly. Those early years were challenging as Morillon navigated a new language and culture.
“I didn’t know English. I didn’t know anything. It was very hard, I’ll be honest,” she says. “I remember a lot of times in kindergarten where I had just trouble even telling the teacher, ‘Hey, we went on the bus, or in the car.’ It was complicated,” she says.
Despite these obstacles, her determination to succeed never wavered and today, Morillon refers to the time as “a big learning experience” explaining, “[I was] just trying to catch up and understand how really the world works around me.”
Her early interest in learning how things work grew as she watched her older brother work on his car. “I was maybe like 10 or 11. He would work on his [Mercury] Cougar,” she says. “I wanted to learn more. It was definitely a call.”
Igniting Her Potential
Upon reaching high school age, Morillon attended Metro Tech in Phoenix where she discovered a wide range of vocational classes were offered. This included automotive classes.
“In Metro Tech High School, they offer vocational classes such as engineering and automotive technology, auto collision, culinary, construction, a lot of things,” Morillon explains, “I was able to check each one of those out. During my sophomore year, I was able to pursue the class of my choice, and mine was automotive technology.”
Was she at all concerned about being a female in a male-dominated trade? “There have always been women in this field,” Morillon says. “It’s just the stereotype is that it’s mostly for men. It didn’t concern me too much. There were at least two or three more girls in the class, and that was enough to encourage me.”
As expected, Morillon found she loved her automotive classes. It was there she was introduced to SkillsUSA. One of her advisors was quite involved in the program and seeing those distinct red blazers caught her eye, “My curiosity piqued at that,” she says. But it wasn’t just the blazer, it was the enthusiasm of her advisor that sealed the deal for her.
Morillon jumped in with both feet and soon found herself participating in the Prepared Speech competition, “I got the silver medal for that here in Arizona,” Morillon says. I actually spoke about the automotive field and how SkillsUSA worked like an engine, that it had the spark and it just, you know, ignited so much.”
Her experience speaks directly to the heart of this year’s “Ignite Your Potential” theme, as she discovered the power of that initial spark, fueling her passion and driving her forward in both her personal development and career ambitions.
The Road to Success
After high school, Morillon continued her education at Universal Technical Institute (UTI) in Avondale, Ariz. UTI also awarded her the NASCAR Brienne Davis Scholarhship Award for $10,000.
While attending UTI, she gained practical experience working at AutoZone and Firestone. “I was learning and earning at the same time, which was great. I worked as a lube tech, learned about parts, and continued to build my skills,” she says.
After finishing the program at UTI, Morillon went to work for Tesla as service technician. She was there three years before going to Lucid Motors where she was recently promoted to Service Advisor. In that role, she works with the public as well as the technicians. Morillon’s experience under the hood helps her ease the concerns of customers who are worried about their vehicle.
“It’s a great reassurance for the customers themselves. You know, they’re talking to the technician now. I’m able to take care of them and their concerns while at the same time, work with the team. So, it’s amazing to have this as a background. It makes things so much easier and just, you know, more helpful for the customer,” she says.
She credits both the professional development and the competition experience in SkillsUSA with helping her communicate effectively with customers. “It’s amazing to have this as a background. It makes things so much easier and more helpful for the customer … Being able to deliver the message from technical terms to something that everybody will be able to comprehend and just make it easier for customers to understand what’s going on,” she says.
Morillon feels a lot of responsibility to the community and that personal connection helps her keep things in perspective, “I know it’s all wrenching, working on the car, getting it done, but never forget the people that actually drive these vehicles,” she says. “It’s customers and families. You’re helping somebody. You’re fixing someone’s vehicle that they’re going to, at the end of the day, be driving back home. You want to make sure it’s safe.”
Personally, she’s seen a lot of growth since entering the automotive field, “I started washing cars and then I became a technician. I’ve been able to travel, you know, states like Hawaii, Florida, Idaho, thanks to this field. I’ve been able to go all over,” she says. “There’s so much room for growth, that I love. And there’s still more room. I’m still growing and still learning. You can take these skills at anywhere, and it’s just going to keep adding to what you know.”
In October 2019, Morillon was celebrated alongside other technicians by TechForce Foundation at the Las Vegas Concours d’ Elegance Gala. The event included the auction of a live painting by automotive artist Kevin Paige, a 1938 Phantom Corsair at the Welcome to Las Vegas sign. Funds raised through the auction will benefit future scholarships and support the garage makeover of SECTA, the oldest automotive tech high school in Nevada.
Morillon is also eager to pay it forward, “I feel like I have a testimony or story to share,” she says. “It’s helped me tremendously, you know, coming here with nothing and being able to do all these things thanks to this field, and thanks to technical school and thanks to training and SkillsUSA.”
