This year we received more nominations than ever before for this prestigious award.  It wasn't an easy task to pick a winner from all the deserving candidates, and we ended up with a tie.  Every one of the Journeymen who were nominated should be commended for doing the most important, but most underrated, job in our organization - that is, training and upgrading the skills of the people they work with.  Without people like them, our market share would plummet, but with them, we have hope for the future.  Let's face it, what we have to sell as an organization is the quality and professionalism of our memebers. 

People like these nominees significantly raise our retention rate in the Apprenticeship, saving it thousands of dollars of expenses otherwise wasted on training those who drop out.  Apprentices often drop out of the Apprenticeship because of abusive behavior of the foreman or crew, or the uncaring attitude that looks at our apprentices as "cheap labor" for the dirty jobs, and not as the future of our trade.

I congratulate every one of the following for being nominated as Mentor/Trainer of the Year.  Like I said, it was a difficult choice, and everyone of them is a winner in my book.  The 2009 nominees were - Doug Black, Al Blouin, Brian Cross, Cal Fuller, Justin Hastings, John Johnson, Rob McCauley, Dan McKinney, Warren Morey, Andrew Morth, Darren Pike and Isaac Strong.

Congratulations to the winners of the 2009 Cement Mason Mentor/Trainer of the Year Award - Darren Pike and Isaac Strong!!!