38 The ELEVATOR CONSTRUCTOR Local Roundup Congratulations to Tyler Pryor for completing the NEIEP program. LOCAL 20 Recently I received word from a couple mechanics working in downtown Seattle that there was an incident where an elevator wound up on the safeties with the counterweight in the pit due to a catastrophic sheave failure. No one was hurt, but as you can imagine, there was significant equipment damage. Inspection of equipment including sheaves and bearings should be commonplace in our daily, monthly, and quarterly inspections, and of course prior to completing a category five test. Let’s keep up the good and safe work. Keep the faith. Hold the line. Spread the love. Scott scottylocal19@gmail.com Rod Spaniel received his Honorary Membership with Eric Mills as presenter. LOCAL 20 • Louisville, Kentucky Greetings from Local 20. Every March we welcome spring with its emerging flowers and plants, we begin to feel some relief from the winter temperatures, and some of us celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Aside from becoming a drinker’s holiday, it is my birthday, and being of Irish decent I always get a few green beers and bacon. The story of Saint Patrick is long. He was a prominent figure in the history of Catholicism in Ireland. Born in Roman Britain in the 5th Century, he was kidnapped and enslaved at the age of 16 where he was brought to Ireland. Years later he would escape but returned to Ireland and was credited with bringing Christianity to its people. The legend of St. Patrick is that he explained the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) using the three leaves of a native Irish clover, the shamrock. In the centuries following his death (believed to have been on March 17, 461) the mythology surrounding his life became ever more ingrained in the Irish culture. The first parade was not in Ireland, but America in 1601, and a tradition now celebrated by millions every year worldwide. Five generations ago a brave young man traveled halfway around the globe to a new country. Seeking new opportunities, my three-time great grandfather, Hillery Dugan, brought his family to America from County Cork, Ireland, to Nelson County, Kentucky in the early 19th century—a big decision, especially with nothing here to land on. In his thirties, he changed countries, moved his family, and left behind any sense of home and comfort. He must have been a bold man. We haven’t migrated far since then; we are less than an hour away from his original land. How my life might have been different if Hillery hadn’t crossed the oceans in such a huge leap of faith, a faith undoubtedly helped derived from St. Patrick himself. Much in the way the Irish faith has grown for over a thousand years, our local has grown and thrived for over 100. The stories we tell and the bonds we make will last another 100 years. This local has a lot to offer by way of grandfathering. The ones before us paid a price and led each of us to this point in time. We benefit from a long line of tough old men paving the way and creating the career and culture we have today. Be proud. Stand tall. Remember this year when you’re sipping green beers and celebrating that each of us is part of this elite group. Local 20 has roots. We have standards. We have clout. There are only 102 active members as of writing this. You’ve earned the pride you feel, and the ones before us who taught us our earholes from our elbows deserve the gratitude as well. I made a jump into this trade at 31 years old. I don’t mind starting from the bottom because it’s just that, a starting point. Wrapping up my apprenticeship this year,
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