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IKORCC Partners with Porter County Schools to Launch State Earn and Learn Pre-Apprenticeship Programs
/in Apprenticeship, News /by IKORCCOn August 24th, the Indiana/Kentucky/Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters alongside officials from the Indiana Office of Work-Based Learning and Apprenticeship (OWBLA), IKORCC signatory contractors, school officials, and community stakeholders formally recognized Porter County Career Center (PCCC), Portage High School, and Chesterton High School’s respective carpentry programs as newly certified State Earn and Learn (SEAL) Programs.
Porter County Career and Technical Center – signatory contractor partner – Tonn & Blank Const. representative Megan Wheeler
State Earn and Learn (SEAL) Program
The SEAL Program is now one of Indiana’s state-level pre-apprenticeship programs. SEAL is designed to deliver a work-and-learn experience for pre-apprentices along with both the skills and certifications that will make them more valuable to potential employers.
IKORCC SEAL programs are aligned to the Indiana Career and Technical Educations Next Level Program of Study. By utilizing the Carpenters Career Connections curriculum, students will also be earning an IKORCC Carpentry Level 1 Apprentice Certification that satisfies Indiana Graduation Pathway’s postsecondary readiness requirement.
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Carpenters Build Community at Indiana State Fair
/in Community, News /by Lacey NixSaturday, August 7th was Carpenters Day at the Indiana State Fair. Volunteers spent the day building keepsake toolboxes with families, recruiting new members and forming community partnerships.
When visitors came to the fair, the first thing they saw was giant banners that said “Welcome to Carpenters Day”. Fair staff wore “We’re Hiring” buttons directing them to our career application. All day long, radio ads for the Carpenters played over the loud speaker and our ads were on the back cover of the State Fair program. The sky ride also had recruitment advertising on the back of the cars.
Volunteers for the IKORCC were phenomenal. They set up four tents, showcased a new “Now Hiring” truck and had a large presence on the busiest corner of the fair. Volunteers handed out recruitment materials and built over 600 toolboxes. You couldn’t walk anywhere at the fair and not see the IKORCC and UBC logo in the hands of kids and adults. Hammy the mascot also made a few appearances!
In addition to building toolboxes, volunteers also sold raffle tickets for a playhouse with proceeds benefiting Carpenters Caring. Carpenters Caring is a non-profit that raises money for IKORCC members in need. This year’s playhouse was built by our partners at Central Nine Career Center. Students in the construction trades class completed the project. Special thanks to these students and their instructor Frank Wormann for their help.
Volunteers raised nearly $600 for Carpenters Caring thanks to raffle ticket sales and plan to continue selling raffle tickets until the drawing in late October.
To view all photos from the event, click here:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1esmj3cmm1qx369/AACQNHUnN78hqSh48noCKFaya?dl=0
To view a Facebook live video of the event, click here;
https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=675898710474761&ref=watch_permalink
Mass Timber Project Celebrates with Topping Out
/in News, Special /by Hannah ErwinA symbol of achievement and dedication – this topping out signifies much more than just the final beam.
Wednesday, July 28th, 2021, the Indiana Kentucky Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters sponsored a topping out ceremony for the Intro Cleveland project. The event was held to celebrate the feat of this historic project across from the West Side Market in Cleveland, OH.
Intro Cleveland will be a mixed-use building with apartments, an event center, and retail space. The building is nine stories high and completely framed with mass timber. Over 2,000 pieces of timber, cut and shipped from Binderholtz in Austria, will make this building temporarily hold the title of the tallest mass timber building in the United States. Around 50% of the timber will remain visible in the building as it is filled with tenants, a reminder of the sustainability of the project. The wood began to arrive in the Port of Cleveland in December 2020 and the final piece was installed by IKORCC Union Carpenters on July 1, 2021.
IKORCC Executive Secretary-Treasurer Todd Pancake spoke at the ceremony about the hard work members have put into this project. Read more
Bobby Miller Wins Don Sherry Achievement Award
/in News /by Lacey NixFew people have left the impact on the Indiana/Kentucky/Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters as Don Sherry did. Don Sherry tragically passed away in 2017. His
Don Sherry Award winner Bobby Miller and IKORCC EST Todd Pancake.
list of accomplishments is vast, and his impact on our union is unprecedented.
Don Sherry passionately served the Indiana/Kentucky/Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters for nearly 20 years as a business representative and Director of Organizing. He was the President of Carpenters Local 175 and a dedicated advocate for worker’s rights and unions. Colleagues said his dedication to this organization was second to none.
To honor his legacy, the IKORCC gives the Don Sherry Achievement Award annually.
To honor Don’s service and dedication, each year since his passing the IKORCC has given The Don Sherry Achievement Award. The award recognizes a rank and file member who has gone above and beyond in their service on the job site, with contractors, in MAC meetings (Member Action Committee), and in their community. In addition to giving an award in his honor, IKORCC delegates raise money each year during their annual conference and donate the proceeds to the Diabetes Foundation in Don Sherry’s honor.
Recipients of the Don Sherry Achievement Award include:
2018 – Glenn Downs, Local 599
2019 – Raymond Poer, Local 599
2020 – Cory Hudson, Local 285
2021 – Bobby Miller, Local 357
The Indiana/Kentucky/Ohio Regional Council of Carpenters is proud to name Bobby Miller of Local 357 as the 2021 Don Sherry Achievement Award winner. Bobby is a retired 23-year member with a passion for the union and volunteering. He served 17 of those years as an officer to the local, serving as a trustee, financial Secretary and as a delegate to the regional council. He also worked as a part-time instructor in Newburgh, Indiana.
After retirement Bobby did not slow down. He’s serving as a project manager for the Paducah-McCracken County Habitat for Humanity, where he has helped build two homes. Another is scheduled for next year.
“This award is presented to Bobby Miller in recognition of his work going above and beyond the call of duty. The award honors his outstanding achievements in the workplace, exceptional contributions to the community and outstanding service to the IKORCC,” said Todd Pancake, Executive Secretary-Treasurer for the IKORCC.
“One of the greatest rewards to Bobby is mentoring numerous trade school programs on the job site and giving them the unique opportunity to perform work at an actual construction site. Bobby enjoys this, as he is able to spread the word about a career in the trades and the benefits a union job provides,” said IKORCC Business Representative Chad Helm.
To see a video of Bobby’s nomination & acceptance click here.
IKORCC Cookout Lifts Community Spirits
/in Diversity, News /by Marci PingThe Indiana/Kentucky/Ohio Regional Council of Carpenter’s I.D.E.A. (Inclusion. Diversity. Equity. Awareness.) Committee faced a challenge. Local community members in Dayton, Ohio were looking for a way to get more involved and wanted to take action to improve their neighborhood. Unifying the Community On Thursday, June 24th, 2021 the I.D.E.A. Committee joined together over 111 members of […]