“I graduated high school in 1972 in a small, blue-collar neighborhood where many of my neighbors were tradespeople working in the Washington, D.C., metro area. I chose to attend junior college and pursue studies in music. After all, it was the ’70s!

Many of my good friends went straight into the trades after graduating high school. Local 26 was their choice, and they were happy with the training, wages, benefits and brotherhood. After spending a couple of years at college, I realized that being an electrical apprentice was the better choice for me, too.

Over time, I did go back and finish my undergraduate degree in environmental management, and then I got my MBA. As part of my learning path, I took advantage of the journeyman classes the JATC offered and obtained electrical licenses in the tri-state area.

I had many good fortunes in my career, starting with the support of the union community, and I quickly moved from the residential to the commercial apprentice classification. I was mentored by many talented journeymen who kept me safe and taught me what it meant to be a union electrician.

After completing my apprenticeship, I spent the next 14 years as a fourth-year instructor while working full time as a journeyman and foreman. In the Washington metro area, contractors had an advantage, keeping people working while construction slowed around the country. There was always work because the federal government was there.

People in general don’t appreciate that tradespeople show up every day, in every type of weather, working until the job is finished. As a Washington Building Congress Craftsman Awards judge, I witnessed the extraordinary talent our brothers and sisters have shown in overcoming obstacles in the field.

As a craftsman judge, I was able to get into places that the general public doesn’t get to see. At the Kennedy Center, I remember an HVAC upgrade where tradespeople had to figure out how to distribute hot and cold water throughout the building while isolating all the vibration so it wouldn’t resonate throughout the building. These weren’t engineers. They were skilled craftsmen that knew how to do their work and overcome problems that came their way.

My biggest takeaway from judging a project was the pride and enthusiasm exhibited from the team who installed the work.

In another instance, I talked to a superintendent of a data center who had handled an enormous amount of work that had to be done on the rooftop. He said everyone was doubtful that he could get the work done, but he’d hired every crane within 100 miles to come out and lift all the equipment up onto the buildings over one weekend, and he got it done. It’s this type of everyday problem-​solving that demonstrates how to get 10 pounds of work into a five-pound bag.

Now that I am at the end of my career, what I remember most is the camaraderie, respect and pride of my brothers and sisters in their work. We need to stay the course as we have a president who is stripping us of our rights and doesn’t believe in making our country stronger through alternative energy and acknowledging the contribution of the unions.

We can’t underestimate the power of having representation for our wages, health and welfare benefits. Stay strong, look to the future, and support the unions.”