Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16of the U.S. Army, is moving back to Ohio with his family. He will be greeted by the members of Local 162 in Dayton, Ohio, and will be working for EMCOR/DeBra-Kuempel. He stated at a Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning and Re- frigeration Service Technician (HVACR) Veter- ans In Piping® (VIP®) graduation held at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) that aer 20 years in the Army, he would be starting his life when everyone else was having his or her mid-life crisis. He took an aptitude test and realized he wanted to work with his hands. Everything he looked at required five years of experience. He stated that, no matter how much he tweaked his resume, that experience was just not there. He sat in on an information session about the VIP program, and he was hooked immediately. Nathan Tiemeier was one of the lucky ones. He was accepted and graduated from the UA’s HVACR VIP program at JBLM. Jamison Atchley said, “I feel very fortunate to be in this union,” and he meant it. As his grand- parents, mom, cousins and mother-in-law (his wife is still deployed) looked on, Brother Atchley accepted his certificate confirming his completion of the program. He is looking forward to working for Johnson Controls and to joining the member- ship of Local 290 in Portland, Oregon. For United Association Business Managers and members, the VIP program has hit a chord. Many of the UA’s members have honorably served their country, and their desire to “pay it forward” is clearly evident. Local 32 Business Manager Jeff Owen stated, “In the mid-1980s I had an opportu- nity to be a soldier on this base, and I can say without a doubt, that many of the things I learned here—responsibility, work ethic, charac- ter—have stayed with me and molded me into the man I am today. I know that each and every one of you have learned these same values and principles, and they have made you who you are today.” Kip Bagley, Vice President of Service for EMCOR Services/Mesa Energy Systems, recog- nized the quality of these candidates immediately. As a contractor representative, Mr. Bagley is part of the panel that interviews the program candi- dates. He said, “I have interviewed many techni- cians over the years, but I’ve rarely had the good fortune to meet so many high-potential applicants as those veterans I met who are applying for entry into this program. In finding new technicians, I’ve oen felt that you should ‘hire the attitude’ and ‘teach the skill,’ but these men and women are ex- actly what our industry has been looking for.” Bob Lake, President of EMCOR Services/Mesa Energy Systems and former Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Mechanical Service Contrac- tors of America (MSCA), added, “As a contractor, you’re getting a mature, disciplined employee who chooses the HVACR industry, wants to work in your geographic location, and has completed his first year of apprenticeship equivalence through the VIP program. It’s almost like it’s too good to be true. We have already hired two VIP HVACR graduates and plan on being active in this program forever.” “is is a great industry,” former President of the Mechanical Contractors Association of CAREERops Nathan Tiemeier Joint Base Lewis-McChord HVACR Class 01, third-year apprentice Throwing a Lifeline to Transitioning Soldiers 10 “I’ve often felt that you should ‘hire the attitude’ and ‘teach the skill,’ but these men and women are exactly what our industry has been looking for.” – Kip Bagley, Vice President of Service for EMCOR Services/ Mesa Energy Systems Nathan Tiemeier, a 20-year veteran