In this entry, condensed from one of the “I AM ZACHRY” articles in the company’s Force Report magazine, Stacey Wolf tells us how Zachry took a chance on him when others wouldn’t.

When I came to work at Zachry in 2009 I was thankful for the opportunity. I’d always wanted to get into plant work but I kept running into the “experience” roadblock. Every time I’d apply for a job, the manager would look at my resume and say, “You don’t have any experience.” That wasn’t exactly true. I’d been working in construction for about five years. And I like to think I have some common sense. But I didn’t have the exact experience they wanted and they weren’t willing to invest in training me. I’d ask, “How am I supposed to get any experience if you won’t hire me and let me learn?” The answer was usually, “I don’t know and I don’t care. Come back when you do.”

Zachry gave me the chance to get past that. I was hired as a “green helper” and allowed to work alongside experienced craftsmen. It was supposed to be a temporary job but nearly four years later, it’s turned into the career I was looking for. I’ve found my home here. But I couldn’t have done it without the help of a lot of people along the way. My supervisor encouraged me to take the journeyman pipefitter test after only a couple of months. To say he “encouraged” me is being polite. He hounded me. I remember telling him I didn’t feel like I was ready. But he was persistent. “You probably won’t pass,” he said. “But you’ll know what you need to focus on so you can pass it the next time.”

I finally took the test, really to see what I had learned, and I passed. Only by one point, but that was good enough. I was as surprised as anyone. If it wasn’t for the people I’ve worked with and learned from I certainly wouldn’t be where I am now. If I have the chance to learn new skills, new processes, I’m going to take advantage of that. And I have lots of chances to do that here. I’m grateful for the people who have taken an interest in helping me succeed and I’m not going to let them down. There are still lots of things for me to learn and lots of jobs for me to experience. I’ve been given a great opportunity and I intend to make the most of it, and that’s why I AM ZACHRY.