The Pipeline - Remembering Joseph T. Walsh III

OCTOBER 2021 – Special Edition

REMEMBERING

Joseph T. Walsh III

A Message from President Martin Downs Void is the word that continually comes to mind when I think of Joe Walsh. The void left by his passing, both personally and professionally is immense. We, as a company are dealing with that void and accompanying grief in our own individual ways.

For me, the thought that Joe is no longer with us continues to be, as I’m sure it will be for some time, a concept which is difficult to accept.

He was my friend. He was my mentor. He was my sounding board. He provided me with a blueprint on how to be successful in business and in life. I’m not sure he ever realized that he had that impact on me but I suspect Joe knew what he was doing, not only for me but for everyone he encountered.

I look back at how our relationship matured over the years and it makes me realize just how much of an impact Joe had on my life.

There is no doubt about it, I would not be where I am in my career without Joe. He made the decision to make me successful and opened all of his knowledge and relationships to me. He didn’t have to open that to me. I owe him an indescribable amount.

So yes, the void is there. And you really can’t fill that void. There is no replacing Joe, at least not with one person. This business is about relationships and how you treat and motivate people.

I think a lot of relationships will suffer without him. You’re never going to be able to replace that and that’s a testament to what Joe built here. He built an organization that has a many great and strong people.

When he stepped up to CEO, the company didn’t skip a beat not because I did an immaculate job replacing him, but because of the structure and organization he set up. It is the people he surrounded me with and developed over the years.

It’s a testament to him.

So we’re not trying to replace or replicate what he did because that would be unachievable. Joe was such a big guy in stature that when he walked into a room he commanded it through what he accomplished over the years. Take a look at all the industry agencies he impacted. I don’t know how he had time for all of them or to do anything else, especially when you realize the other things he was doing like the youth coaching in his community.

He did so much in addition to the industry business and he never seemed flustered or harried. He simply did it. So when he walked into a room, yes he commanded respect, whether it was internally with the Creamer family or externally with clients and agencies. He just had an aura about him and when he spoke, people listened.

You could see all of that by the overwhelming outreach that we have experienced since Joe passed. The contacts and people calling, willing to lend a hand on behalf of Joe has been incredible. People have called and offered their help because we “lost a guy like that”. That’s because of the relationships Joe built.

It was quite remarkable fielding those phone calls from clients, customers, and competitors.

The response to Joe’s passing has been overwhelming and that, too, is evidence that the Creamer family made the right decision when choosing Joe to be the first non-Creamer to be the president and CEO of the company. They saw who he was and the impact he could have and that is proving to be the case once again based on the reaction people have had to his passing.

The Creamers knew if Joe said he was going to do something it would be taken care of. It was certainly something I experienced personally. I have worked at Creamer my entire career, coming up

as an intern. And all along, as I watched and learned, he continually demonstrated that he had a fair perspective on how to solve a problem. That whole calm, cool, collected thing was Joe to a T. He was very approachable with issues and always gave you sound advice and that’s one of the things personally I will miss.

“Then he was [eventually] elevated to vice president because we saw his work ethic and the kind of quality, special guy he was.

When the time came [for a new president] we saw his capabilities and what he was doing for the company. He had a unique way of challenging people to get the best out of them.’

You’d have a conversation with him, he’d give you advice and help where he could but he wouldn’t solve the problem for you.

He’d point you in the right direction and help you tackle the problem. And, you knew, that when you walked out of the room, that Joe was on your side and had your back.

So, when the decision to hire a new president finally came around, none of the Creamer brothers [Fletch, Dale or Glenn] felt that they would be the right fit to continue in the role. They didn’t have to look very far or very long to see that the perfect fit was just a few feet down the hallway at Creamer headquarters.

There is an emptiness there now, a void that will be so difficult to fill. And all I can do now is think of what he would say if I told him that, think of the advice he would give me and try to carry on in a manner befitting the man and everything for which he stood.

“He came into the office and looks at us and said ‘I’m in trouble’,” Fletch Creamer, Jr. said. “We said, on the contrary. We want to make you president of the company. He became the first non-Creamer to hold the position and he was as honored as we were. A couple of days later, I went into his office with a miniature football and threw it to him and said ‘It’s your turn to run with it, see what you can do’.”

An Honorary Creamer

Reflections from Fletch Creamer, Jr & Dale Creamer Joseph Walsh III proved that there is more to being part of a family than sharing the same last name.

Simply ask Fletch or Dale Creamer, two of the namesakes of J. Fletcher Creamer and Son. The company, which has been an East Coast staple in the construction industry for more than a century, had a Creamer at the helm for nearly all that time. That is until Walsh came along.

“My first impression of him was that he was a stand up, quality guy,” Fletch Creamer, Jr. said. “We were looking for, at the time [of his original hire], a general superintendent of utilities. Our guy was retiring and we were looking for a replacement. We weren’t in an immediate rush and Joe wasn’t either. We had breakfast three or four times and he finally said I’m ready and then I said I’m ready.”

The brothers both described him as a friend and mentor, and Walsh never stopped being either when he moved up the corporate ladder.

Another term that many inside and outside the company used to describe Walsh was “a man’s man”. He loved his family as much as he loved his work and it showed equally on both fronts.

He enjoyed golf, coaching youth sports and spending time in his backyard pool. So, it isn’t much a surprise that Walsh, who clearly embodied everything for which J. Fletcher Creamer & Son stands, was considered family by the Creamers.

“He was a good person to be with,” Dale Creamer said. “I like to believe that he and I were cut a little from the same cloth. We would yell and shout at each other about something and two seconds later we were telling jokes and laughing. We’d raise our voices every once in a while, and then laugh at what was said.

That’s as much as family as you can ask for.”

“He cared for the company tremendously and when something went wrong, he wore it on his sleeve. He took responsibility. He was just a perfect fit for this company. And he was just a good man, a real good man.”

A man that proved that family bonds go deeper than a last name or a title on a letterhead.

Reflections from Joe’s Industry Peers The impact that Joe Walsh III had on J. Fletcher Creamer and Son is evident by how the company grew and flourished under his leadership. What is just as impressive though, is how his peers and competitors in the industry viewed Walsh.

“There was never any hesitation,” Dale Creamer said. “We certainly could have kept the position in the family but for the growth of the company, it didn’t make sense. It was such a good decision. We needed the right person to step up and it was very clear that it was Joe because he was so engaged in the company.

He very much deserved it. He cared about the business, he cared about people and he certainly cared about doing a good job for the family. It was an overwhelming and easy choice.”

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The Creamer brothers said it will be difficult, if not impossible, to fill the void left by Walsh’s passing, in personal as well as business terms. He meant so much not only to Creamer but to APi, Creamer’s parent company, in terms of guidance. When he took on a larger role with APi his presence was still felt at Creamer.

“We’d see it in meetings. He’d always have a way of challenging people. He was such a good person; I still get emotional talking about it. It breaks my heart. That was a phone call [informing him of Walsh’s passing] that I never thought I would get.”

An Industry Legend Remembered

Walsh, who passed away on August 2nd, became the first person outside the family to hold the title of president at Creamer when he was named to the position in 2006. That he didn’t share a last name with the company’s founder or the generations of Creamers that followed mattered not at all, particularly to the Creamer family. He had demonstrated through word and deed over the previous 11 years that he was as much a part of the company’s fabric as those who shared the founder’s DNA.

Fletch Creamer, Jr. retired from full-time work with the company in September of 2020 and was able to do so, in part because of the work Walsh had done to build the business and create new opportunities. Fletch Creamer, Jr. wasn’t surprised by what Walsh accomplished though. He had seen something special in him from the outset.

What Walsh did was take the company to even greater heights than it had already reached. Walsh, in the process, also cemented his place in the Creamer family’s heart as well as improving on what was already a sterling reputation in the industry.

“I’m sure there is someone out there who will take his place but guys like him are hard to replace,” Fletch Creamer, Jr. said. “He’s a tough guy to replace. Guys like him don’t come around all the time. He was the Michael Jordan, the Wayne Gretzky of the industry. We are that much better because of him. There are a lot of good athletes in the company but he was that one notch above everyone else [like Jordan and Gretzky].

The former Creamer president was a trusted friend and mentor to so many in the industry that it was difficult to ever truly view him as a competitor. To many, he was simply Joe, a man who cared about helping other people while making their personal and professional worlds better.

2 generations of Creamer presidents: Fletch Creamer, Jr., and Joe Walsh.

The words that were used to describe Walsh in the wake of his passing speak volumes in regards to the type of person

he was. Trusted, genuine and honest are among the many ways Walsh’s peers described him.

didn’t matter where an individual was on the pecking order. He treated everyone with respect.”

“He was one of those special people you meet in your lifetime, whether it be a family relation or a religious individual or a special business person,” said Robert Briant, Jr., the CEO of the Utility and Transportation Contractors Association [UTCA] who had known Walsh for a quarter of a century. “You can count on one hand the really, truly special people.

He was an extremely talented leader. He was humble and kind and he just knew the industry very well. When you package everything up into what you would think of as an ideal leader and that was Joe. It

“I can tell you what I am going to miss the most – he had such a hearty laugh and I’m going to miss that a lot. We had a lot of laughs. We dealt with a lot of serious stuff but when we were off the clock, we had a lot of fun. It was a friendship. He was just one of those special people in your life. He will never be forgotten. There is going to be a void in my heart. Over time, the pain won’t be as sharp, it will soften, but there will always be a void. He is someone I will always remember and think of often.”

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You could see all of that by the overwhelming outreach that we have experienced since Joe passed. The contacts and people calling, willing to lend a hand on behalf of Joe has been incredible. People have called and offered their help because we “lost a guy like that”. That’s because of the relationships Joe built.

It was quite remarkable fielding those phone calls from clients, customers, and competitors.

The response to Joe’s passing has been overwhelming and that, too, is evidence that the Creamer family made the right decision when choosing Joe to be the first non-Creamer to be the president and CEO of the company. They saw who he was and the impact he could have and that is proving to be the case once again based on the reaction people have had to his passing.

The Creamers knew if Joe said he was going to do something it would be taken care of. It was certainly something I experienced personally. I have worked at Creamer my entire career, coming up

as an intern. And all along, as I watched and learned, he continually demonstrated that he had a fair perspective on how to solve a problem. That whole calm, cool, collected thing was Joe to a T. He was very approachable with issues and always gave you sound advice and that’s one of the things personally I will miss.

“Then he was [eventually] elevated to vice president because we saw his work ethic and the kind of quality, special guy he was.

When the time came [for a new president] we saw his capabilities and what he was doing for the company. He had a unique way of challenging people to get the best out of them.’

You’d have a conversation with him, he’d give you advice and help where he could but he wouldn’t solve the problem for you.

He’d point you in the right direction and help you tackle the problem. And, you knew, that when you walked out of the room, that Joe was on your side and had your back.

So, when the decision to hire a new president finally came around, none of the Creamer brothers [Fletch, Dale or Glenn] felt that they would be the right fit to continue in the role. They didn’t have to look very far or very long to see that the perfect fit was just a few feet down the hallway at Creamer headquarters.

There is an emptiness there now, a void that will be so difficult to fill. And all I can do now is think of what he would say if I told him that, think of the advice he would give me and try to carry on in a manner befitting the man and everything for which he stood.

“He came into the office and looks at us and said ‘I’m in trouble’,” Fletch Creamer, Jr. said. “We said, on the contrary. We want to make you president of the company. He became the first non-Creamer to hold the position and he was as honored as we were. A couple of days later, I went into his office with a miniature football and threw it to him and said ‘It’s your turn to run with it, see what you can do’.”

An Honorary Creamer

Reflections from Fletch Creamer, Jr & Dale Creamer Joseph Walsh III proved that there is more to being part of a family than sharing the same last name.

Simply ask Fletch or Dale Creamer, two of the namesakes of J. Fletcher Creamer and Son. The company, which has been an East Coast staple in the construction industry for more than a century, had a Creamer at the helm for nearly all that time. That is until Walsh came along.

“My first impression of him was that he was a stand up, quality guy,” Fletch Creamer, Jr. said. “We were looking for, at the time [of his original hire], a general superintendent of utilities. Our guy was retiring and we were looking for a replacement. We weren’t in an immediate rush and Joe wasn’t either. We had breakfast three or four times and he finally said I’m ready and then I said I’m ready.”

The brothers both described him as a friend and mentor, and Walsh never stopped being either when he moved up the corporate ladder.

Another term that many inside and outside the company used to describe Walsh was “a man’s man”. He loved his family as much as he loved his work and it showed equally on both fronts.

He enjoyed golf, coaching youth sports and spending time in his backyard pool. So, it isn’t much a surprise that Walsh, who clearly embodied everything for which J. Fletcher Creamer & Son stands, was considered family by the Creamers.

“He was a good person to be with,” Dale Creamer said. “I like to believe that he and I were cut a little from the same cloth. We would yell and shout at each other about something and two seconds later we were telling jokes and laughing. We’d raise our voices every once in a while, and then laugh at what was said.

That’s as much as family as you can ask for.”

“He cared for the company tremendously and when something went wrong, he wore it on his sleeve. He took responsibility. He was just a perfect fit for this company. And he was just a good man, a real good man.”

A man that proved that family bonds go deeper than a last name or a title on a letterhead.

Reflections from Joe’s Industry Peers The impact that Joe Walsh III had on J. Fletcher Creamer and Son is evident by how the company grew and flourished under his leadership. What is just as impressive though, is how his peers and competitors in the industry viewed Walsh.

“There was never any hesitation,” Dale Creamer said. “We certainly could have kept the position in the family but for the growth of the company, it didn’t make sense. It was such a good decision. We needed the right person to step up and it was very clear that it was Joe because he was so engaged in the company.

He very much deserved it. He cared about the business, he cared about people and he certainly cared about doing a good job for the family. It was an overwhelming and easy choice.”

2

The Creamer brothers said it will be difficult, if not impossible, to fill the void left by Walsh’s passing, in personal as well as business terms. He meant so much not only to Creamer but to APi, Creamer’s parent company, in terms of guidance. When he took on a larger role with APi his presence was still felt at Creamer.

“We’d see it in meetings. He’d always have a way of challenging people. He was such a good person; I still get emotional talking about it. It breaks my heart. That was a phone call [informing him of Walsh’s passing] that I never thought I would get.”

An Industry Legend Remembered

Walsh, who passed away on August 2nd, became the first person outside the family to hold the title of president at Creamer when he was named to the position in 2006. That he didn’t share a last name with the company’s founder or the generations of Creamers that followed mattered not at all, particularly to the Creamer family. He had demonstrated through word and deed over the previous 11 years that he was as much a part of the company’s fabric as those who shared the founder’s DNA.

Fletch Creamer, Jr. retired from full-time work with the company in September of 2020 and was able to do so, in part because of the work Walsh had done to build the business and create new opportunities. Fletch Creamer, Jr. wasn’t surprised by what Walsh accomplished though. He had seen something special in him from the outset.

What Walsh did was take the company to even greater heights than it had already reached. Walsh, in the process, also cemented his place in the Creamer family’s heart as well as improving on what was already a sterling reputation in the industry.

“I’m sure there is someone out there who will take his place but guys like him are hard to replace,” Fletch Creamer, Jr. said. “He’s a tough guy to replace. Guys like him don’t come around all the time. He was the Michael Jordan, the Wayne Gretzky of the industry. We are that much better because of him. There are a lot of good athletes in the company but he was that one notch above everyone else [like Jordan and Gretzky].

The former Creamer president was a trusted friend and mentor to so many in the industry that it was difficult to ever truly view him as a competitor. To many, he was simply Joe, a man who cared about helping other people while making their personal and professional worlds better.

2 generations of Creamer presidents: Fletch Creamer, Jr., and Joe Walsh.

The words that were used to describe Walsh in the wake of his passing speak volumes in regards to the type of person

he was. Trusted, genuine and honest are among the many ways Walsh’s peers described him.

didn’t matter where an individual was on the pecking order. He treated everyone with respect.”

“He was one of those special people you meet in your lifetime, whether it be a family relation or a religious individual or a special business person,” said Robert Briant, Jr., the CEO of the Utility and Transportation Contractors Association [UTCA] who had known Walsh for a quarter of a century. “You can count on one hand the really, truly special people.

He was an extremely talented leader. He was humble and kind and he just knew the industry very well. When you package everything up into what you would think of as an ideal leader and that was Joe. It

“I can tell you what I am going to miss the most – he had such a hearty laugh and I’m going to miss that a lot. We had a lot of laughs. We dealt with a lot of serious stuff but when we were off the clock, we had a lot of fun. It was a friendship. He was just one of those special people in your life. He will never be forgotten. There is going to be a void in my heart. Over time, the pain won’t be as sharp, it will soften, but there will always be a void. He is someone I will always remember and think of often.”

3

Jim Fakult, the President of New Jersey Power and Light [JCP&L], got to know Walsh after moving to New Jersey from Ohio. Their relationship spanned the better part of a decade and it extended beyond the parameters of work.

The two golfed together often and Fakult was effusive in his praise of Walsh.

“He was larger than life,” Keenan said.

“We started out as business contacts and then he became a friend and mentor. He was someone you could reach out to and call if you had a question. He always gave

“I was Assistant Commissioner [of Government and Community Relations] when I was 30 years old and I saw that when Joe spoke, all the other guys listened to him,” Attanasio said. “All the contractors listened to him and thought he was a big deal. When I left the DOT and became the executive director at UTCA I witnessed this again. That is why as a young professional I said to myself, this is someone I want to learn from and stay close with.”

“He is always in my mind,” Fakult said. “He was a high-quality individual who represented a high-quality company. He had integrity and you were always able to have a good, honest conversation with him. If you had a challenge, problems or questions, Joe was always there to help out. He was an industry expert that you could always go to with a big or small question and get a straight forward, common-sense answer.”

“I always respected Joe. I looked up to this man with his knowledge and how he conducted himself professionally. I got to know Joe as a friend, too. He was a good golfer, very competitive, and he loved the sport. I always enjoyed spending time with him because he was the same guy whether you were in the office or not. He is worthy of any and all the tributes that come his way. He was a really good guy who will be sorely missed. He left a very good mark in the state and in the industry.”

Jerry Keenan is the president of the New Jersey Alliance for Action [NJAA], an advocacy group whose mission is to improve New Jersey’s economy through the promotion of capital construction and infrastructure investment. His relationship with Walsh spanned two decades and, according to Keenan, he and Walsh had gotten closer in recent years, particularly after Walsh joined the NJAA board of directors.

you the straight story. You’d get a straight answer from Joe. He knew how to be tough when he needed to be tough and how to be gentle when he needed to be gentle. He was very sharp in understanding how to operate and work with people and I really admired him.”

“I’ve been calling Joe a legend, an icon in the industry. He reached such amazing levels in his career and the thing I am impressed with is that we could be in a room with 50 people and you’d be talking to someone and you’d feel a tap on your shoulder. You’d turn around and it was Joe and he’d say ‘Hey Jerry, how are you?’ He didn’t need to do that to me.

I should be the one walking across the room to speak with him. He didn’t need to go out of his way to be nice to me but he did.”

Going out of his way was a common occurrence with Walsh. Anthony Attanasio experienced that trait first hand. When Joe on a site visit as Segment Leader at APi

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Attanasio, who has worked for the State of New Jersey and UTCA, is the CEO of Hawk Strategies, decided to branch out on his own, some encouragement from Walsh proved to be of immeasurable help.

“When I decided to hang out my own shingle as a consultant, Joe was one of the first people to sit with me. It wasn’t to seek his business but to seek his blessing. He said yes Anthony, you can do it; I don’t lack confidence in you. He said this is great, that he would hire me in a heartbeat. I said yeah, yeah but he said I want to hire you for Creamer and I almost fell out of my chair. That wasn’t the point of our lunch but I signed Creamer before I signed my old company.”

ML Ruberton Construction Company Vice President Rick Berenato said that Walsh was a man of his word and that his presence will be missed. Look no further than the fact that when Walsh moved on from J. Fletcher Creamer and Son and went to APi, which is the umbrella company under which Creamer operates, how he was viewed after the move.

“Look at what APi did,” Beranato said.

“He went from being the President of Creamer to Segment Leader at APi. What’s that tell you? It’s a loss. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about him.”

“When I think of Joe, I think of the way people respected him. It wasn’t because he commanded respect. It was because of his actions and words that people respected him. He was very smart and knew the industry well. He didn’t talk unless he knew what he was talking about so when he talked, everyone listened. Joe mentored everyone and he taught me so much. He made sense with everything he said.”

Monica Seme also figured out pretty quickly that what Walsh said “made sense”. Seme, who got to know Walsh when he moved to APi, is the Vice President of Success and Development and worked as Walsh’s coach. She is a leadership and executive coach and quickly became impressed with Walsh.

“I appreciated Joe so much,” Seme said.

“What I appreciated about him was how much he cared about his people. He genuinely asked ‘Please invite me to all the meetings about the talent in organizations I have purview over’. He just cared so much. My experiences with Joe were close from the standpoint that I was his coach and we talked a lot. It wasn’t personal, but it kind of was. I got to know him on a deeper level and knew what was in his heart. He was such a good, good person.”

“And, I don’t see this very often, but he was always present with you. No matter what was going on, you never felt him trailing off no matter how busy he was.

He was always present and you always felt listened to. I know the relationships he had [with co-workers] and they knew he trusted them and that he was investing in them and that he was present. I know how the people he led feel so I know those were the words that he used. The investment in people is what I really loved about Joe.” Huck Finn also got to know Walsh through their work together at APi. Finn is the president of The APi Construction

Company and began working with Walsh shortly after Creamer joined the APi fold.

He echoed Seme’s sentiment about Walsh’s ability to be in the moment.

“I think, probably, his most unique character trait was his ability to be totally present with you no matter what you were doing,” Finn said. “If his place or duty was being in a meeting with you, he was all there, the whole time. Joe had the computer off and everything away from him and that translated for me. He had a way of making you feel important, that whatever you were doing was a big deal. I always appreciated that about him.”

“I worked with Joe but I was never a peer of Joe. He was leading Creamer and I was with APi Construction. We worked together on leadership committees until last year when he became a segment leader. I reported to him from 2020 until now. The relationship we had was the same in 2016 to what we had in 2021.

Obviously the relationship had grown over time.”

Harry Chowansky, the Vice President of HC Constructors, Inc., put it simply.

“Every day I think about calling him and wanting to talk with him,” Chowansky said. “It’s hard. Even though we were fairly close in age, it’s like missing a big brother.”

Frank and Michael Criscola of the Crisdel Group, Inc. worked with Walsh for nearly 15 years and also spoke glowingly of Walsh. Frank Criscola, who is the

president and COO at Crisdel, said that he always thought of Walsh as a member of the Creamer family – not only that he worked there but that he viewed him as a part of the actual family.

“He was such a vital part of the organization, I put him on that [familial] level,” Frank Criscola said. “The thing that stands out most was his ability to be firm but fair. I’m still at a loss for words.”

Michael Criscola is the Executive Vice President at Crisdel. He always admired the way Walsh was able to handle any situation, particularly the difficult situations, that can arise through the course of doing business.

“His ability to manage those situations was impressive,” Michael Criscola said.

“He was always well-put together and prepared to protect Creamer’s interest and navigate the situation and come with a solution that was equitable for everyone involved. Joe was impressive in that nature. He always looked at the big picture for the industry as well as Creamer.”

“We worked a lot as a sub to Creamer and vice versa. And, no matter what the situation, you always felt like you were working together with Joe, whether it was an industry issue or just something on a job. It was a team effort. That’s his legacy.

That’s what he’s going to leave behind.

Joe was always about doing what’s right.

To see Joe and be associated with him was a big deal.”

A Leader Like No Other

Reflections from J. Fletcher Creamer & Son Employees His presence was known when he walked into a room He was a leader, a family man and a good friend He had a loud laugh that made you feel comfortable We would always debate, what was it better to be, Irish or Italian —Frank Esposito Frank Esposito wrote the above poem about Joseph Walsh III after the former J. Fletcher Creamer & Son President passed away in August. Esposito has been with the company for 38 years and had worked alongside Walsh for much of that time.

That he was moved to write such touching words about his friend and colleague gives a glimpse into what Walsh meant to Esposito.

It also provides a snapshot of what he meant to so many in the company on both a personal and professional level.

Joe Walsh & Frank Esposito making memories outside of the office.

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Jim Fakult, the President of New Jersey Power and Light [JCP&L], got to know Walsh after moving to New Jersey from Ohio. Their relationship spanned the better part of a decade and it extended beyond the parameters of work.

The two golfed together often and Fakult was effusive in his praise of Walsh.

“He was larger than life,” Keenan said.

“We started out as business contacts and then he became a friend and mentor. He was someone you could reach out to and call if you had a question. He always gave

“I was Assistant Commissioner [of Government and Community Relations] when I was 30 years old and I saw that when Joe spoke, all the other guys listened to him,” Attanasio said. “All the contractors listened to him and thought he was a big deal. When I left the DOT and became the executive director at UTCA I witnessed this again. That is why as a young professional I said to myself, this is someone I want to learn from and stay close with.”

“He is always in my mind,” Fakult said. “He was a high-quality individual who represented a high-quality company. He had integrity and you were always able to have a good, honest conversation with him. If you had a challenge, problems or questions, Joe was always there to help out. He was an industry expert that you could always go to with a big or small question and get a straight forward, common-sense answer.”

“I always respected Joe. I looked up to this man with his knowledge and how he conducted himself professionally. I got to know Joe as a friend, too. He was a good golfer, very competitive, and he loved the sport. I always enjoyed spending time with him because he was the same guy whether you were in the office or not. He is worthy of any and all the tributes that come his way. He was a really good guy who will be sorely missed. He left a very good mark in the state and in the industry.”

Jerry Keenan is the president of the New Jersey Alliance for Action [NJAA], an advocacy group whose mission is to improve New Jersey’s economy through the promotion of capital construction and infrastructure investment. His relationship with Walsh spanned two decades and, according to Keenan, he and Walsh had gotten closer in recent years, particularly after Walsh joined the NJAA board of directors.

you the straight story. You’d get a straight answer from Joe. He knew how to be tough when he needed to be tough and how to be gentle when he needed to be gentle. He was very sharp in understanding how to operate and work with people and I really admired him.”

“I’ve been calling Joe a legend, an icon in the industry. He reached such amazing levels in his career and the thing I am impressed with is that we could be in a room with 50 people and you’d be talking to someone and you’d feel a tap on your shoulder. You’d turn around and it was Joe and he’d say ‘Hey Jerry, how are you?’ He didn’t need to do that to me.

I should be the one walking across the room to speak with him. He didn’t need to go out of his way to be nice to me but he did.”

Going out of his way was a common occurrence with Walsh. Anthony Attanasio experienced that trait first hand. When Joe on a site visit as Segment Leader at APi

4

Attanasio, who has worked for the State of New Jersey and UTCA, is the CEO of Hawk Strategies, decided to branch out on his own, some encouragement from Walsh proved to be of immeasurable help.

“When I decided to hang out my own shingle as a consultant, Joe was one of the first people to sit with me. It wasn’t to seek his business but to seek his blessing. He said yes Anthony, you can do it; I don’t lack confidence in you. He said this is great, that he would hire me in a heartbeat. I said yeah, yeah but he said I want to hire you for Creamer and I almost fell out of my chair. That wasn’t the point of our lunch but I signed Creamer before I signed my old company.”

ML Ruberton Construction Company Vice President Rick Berenato said that Walsh was a man of his word and that his presence will be missed. Look no further than the fact that when Walsh moved on from J. Fletcher Creamer and Son and went to APi, which is the umbrella company under which Creamer operates, how he was viewed after the move.

“Look at what APi did,” Beranato said.

“He went from being the President of Creamer to Segment Leader at APi. What’s that tell you? It’s a loss. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about him.”

“When I think of Joe, I think of the way people respected him. It wasn’t because he commanded respect. It was because of his actions and words that people respected him. He was very smart and knew the industry well. He didn’t talk unless he knew what he was talking about so when he talked, everyone listened. Joe mentored everyone and he taught me so much. He made sense with everything he said.”

Monica Seme also figured out pretty quickly that what Walsh said “made sense”. Seme, who got to know Walsh when he moved to APi, is the Vice President of Success and Development and worked as Walsh’s coach. She is a leadership and executive coach and quickly became impressed with Walsh.

“I appreciated Joe so much,” Seme said.

“What I appreciated about him was how much he cared about his people. He genuinely asked ‘Please invite me to all the meetings about the talent in organizations I have purview over’. He just cared so much. My experiences with Joe were close from the standpoint that I was his coach and we talked a lot. It wasn’t personal, but it kind of was. I got to know him on a deeper level and knew what was in his heart. He was such a good, good person.”

“And, I don’t see this very often, but he was always present with you. No matter what was going on, you never felt him trailing off no matter how busy he was.

He was always present and you always felt listened to. I know the relationships he had [with co-workers] and they knew he trusted them and that he was investing in them and that he was present. I know how the people he led feel so I know those were the words that he used. The investment in people is what I really loved about Joe.” Huck Finn also got to know Walsh through their work together at APi. Finn is the president of The APi Construction

Company and began working with Walsh shortly after Creamer joined the APi fold.

He echoed Seme’s sentiment about Walsh’s ability to be in the moment.

“I think, probably, his most unique character trait was his ability to be totally present with you no matter what you were doing,” Finn said. “If his place or duty was being in a meeting with you, he was all there, the whole time. Joe had the computer off and everything away from him and that translated for me. He had a way of making you feel important, that whatever you were doing was a big deal. I always appreciated that about him.”

“I worked with Joe but I was never a peer of Joe. He was leading Creamer and I was with APi Construction. We worked together on leadership committees until last year when he became a segment leader. I reported to him from 2020 until now. The relationship we had was the same in 2016 to what we had in 2021.

Obviously the relationship had grown over time.”

Harry Chowansky, the Vice President of HC Constructors, Inc., put it simply.

“Every day I think about calling him and wanting to talk with him,” Chowansky said. “It’s hard. Even though we were fairly close in age, it’s like missing a big brother.”

Frank and Michael Criscola of the Crisdel Group, Inc. worked with Walsh for nearly 15 years and also spoke glowingly of Walsh. Frank Criscola, who is the

president and COO at Crisdel, said that he always thought of Walsh as a member of the Creamer family – not only that he worked there but that he viewed him as a part of the actual family.

“He was such a vital part of the organization, I put him on that [familial] level,” Frank Criscola said. “The thing that stands out most was his ability to be firm but fair. I’m still at a loss for words.”

Michael Criscola is the Executive Vice President at Crisdel. He always admired the way Walsh was able to handle any situation, particularly the difficult situations, that can arise through the course of doing business.

“His ability to manage those situations was impressive,” Michael Criscola said.

“He was always well-put together and prepared to protect Creamer’s interest and navigate the situation and come with a solution that was equitable for everyone involved. Joe was impressive in that nature. He always looked at the big picture for the industry as well as Creamer.”

“We worked a lot as a sub to Creamer and vice versa. And, no matter what the situation, you always felt like you were working together with Joe, whether it was an industry issue or just something on a job. It was a team effort. That’s his legacy.

That’s what he’s going to leave behind.

Joe was always about doing what’s right.

To see Joe and be associated with him was a big deal.”

A Leader Like No Other

Reflections from J. Fletcher Creamer & Son Employees His presence was known when he walked into a room He was a leader, a family man and a good friend He had a loud laugh that made you feel comfortable We would always debate, what was it better to be, Irish or Italian —Frank Esposito Frank Esposito wrote the above poem about Joseph Walsh III after the former J. Fletcher Creamer & Son President passed away in August. Esposito has been with the company for 38 years and had worked alongside Walsh for much of that time.

That he was moved to write such touching words about his friend and colleague gives a glimpse into what Walsh meant to Esposito.

It also provides a snapshot of what he meant to so many in the company on both a personal and professional level.

Joe Walsh & Frank Esposito making memories outside of the office.

5

“I was proud of the success Joe had at Creamer and APi,” said Esposito, who is a Business Development Manager. “I was by his side when he started his career at Creamer and at the end, I was still there. I can’t express the loss everyone feels not having him around. We appreciated the confidence he had in all of us as we did in him.”

“He was a workaholic. Whenever you traveled with him, he would always be late to meet in the lobby of a hotel because he would be on the computer or a call, which made us run through airports to catch a flight. We had some memorable trips. In a meeting, he wouldn’t ask you a question that he didn’t know the answer to and when you thought you had all the answers he would need, he’d find that question you didn’t have the answer to. He kept everyone on their toes.”

“I appreciated that. It allowed me to see what I couldn’t see at the time [he assigned it]. When all was said and done, you’d look back and say, okay, he had the foresight to see that potential in people. He had an encouraging demeanor. You’d see him interact with all different people at all levels of management and he was respectful, challenging people to do their best. He didn’t ask of anyone what he wasn’t willing to do himself.”

Elizabeth Alvarez could attest to how Walsh kept everyone engaged. She was his assistant and spent the better part of the last two years working directly with him. Alvarez, who had also worked with Walsh on and off over the previous dozen or so years prior to becoming his assistant, pushed people to be the best they could be, instilling confidence in them along the way.

“The thing that stands out is the balance that he held between being firm and fair,” Alvarez said. “He challenged you. He pushed you even if you didn’t believe in what you were doing. He challenged you by assigning projects that first you would think ‘Why me?’ He absolutely did that with me. Here it is, these are the parameters, get it done. And then he would not check in because he had all the confidence in the world even if I didn’t that it would get done.”

Joe with the team at a planning meeting.

There was a great deal that Walsh was willing to do himself with much of it going beyond the scope of the normal boss-employee relationship. Simply ask Creamer Project Manager Patrick Decicco, who experienced Walsh’s generosity first hand.

Decicco’s personal life is unique in that he adopted two of his grandchildren to raise as his own. His daughter has battled a drug addiction for several years so Decicco stepped in nearly six years ago and began raising them.

When one of the boys was having problems at school it was clearly taking a toll on Decicco, who reported to Walsh from 2011 to 2018. Walsh took notice.

“Joe would always ask how my grandsons were; he knew my story on how I adopted the two boys from my daughter who was battling a drug addiction” Decicco said. “The boys were 2 and 8 at the time. There was one day in particular, I remember I was very upset, my 8-year-old was having issues in school. He was getting bullied. Joe sensed something was wrong with me that day, he asked if I was okay. I explained what was going on in my private life and Joe said can I offer you advice?

“Of course, Joe mentioned I should sign him up for self-defense classes, and in the meantime I could bring him to Joe’s house and he would give him boxing lessons. I asked if he was kidding. He told me do you see me smiling? Joe told me he would do anything for kids, he was involved in his towns little league and basketball programs. I thought to myself, this important professional business man wants to take time out of his busy life to help my boy. You could hear in his voice how much he cared about kids. Obviously I didn’t take him up on the offer but he was serious.”

One of the places his colleagues fondly remembered him – the golf course.

6

Andrew Wood, Creamer’s Vice President of Administration & Chief Financial Officer, knew Walsh for over a quarter century.

They both joined the company around the same time and quickly developed a close relationship while working up the ladder to their ultimate leadership roles as APi Segment Leaders. He said “Walsh is a one-in-a-million guy, the type of magnetic person you only come across once in a lifetime. Anyone who was lucky

enough to have had Joe as a friend and colleague, is lucky enough.” Wood also said, “Joe was such a good person and a fantastic leader with great vision, respect for others, and genuine humility.” He noted, “APi is full of former military officers and military academy graduates who have been around many great leaders in their career, it was such a testament to Joe when several reached out and told me “Joe was one of the top leaders who has positively impacted their lives. “He lived his life with amazing discipline and a work ethic second to none. His thirst for knowledge and constant learning made him an expert in construction, the construction industry in general and running a business. As such, Joe was always able to grow people and challenge anyone to be the best they could be, whether it was a foreman out on a job or an accountant in the office. He was the ultimate team coach and knew that ‘Super Bowl’ teams were not built around a single player or position but required excellence across the whole team.”

“Nobody ever left a meeting with Joe feeling like he didn’t want to try harder or do better. That’s because Joe loved this company, this industry and the people who make it their careers. Joe was dedicated to ensuring the professional growth and high-quality careers for all. His level of commitment and willingness to invest in people is illustrated by the Training and Development Center developed under his direction and vision as President. We will be renaming the facility after Joe in his memory and in gratitude for his outstanding leadership and deep commitment to all of the J. Fletcher Creamer and Son, Inc. family.”

Terrell Maroney, a senior estimator, has been with Creamer for 19 years. He started out at the company’s Los Angeles office and

spent 12 years there before moving East when the office closed.

He marveled at Walsh’s work ethic, particularly when he came to California. Maroney said that Walsh would remain on New Jersey time and be up and working before the sun.

“The man was tireless and had an incredible work ethic,” Maroney said. “He would come to office and just go all day long.

By the time I came home I was exhausted. I don’t know how he did it. His work ethic and attention to detail was incredible and that pushed me a lot. He had a good way of challenging people.

And getting them to up their game to his level.

“The other thing is that he made everyone feel important, no matter who they were or what position they had. He was always up front and made you feel like you were part of the operation. He always made me feel that my job was just as important as his to the organization. Maybe I had less responsibility, but he always made me feel like I was important. He always wanted my ideas and suggestions because he thought they were as important as his. At the end of the day, he might have gone with his own idea and though he didn’t agree with mine he always made me feel like it was important. He was an incredible man and I’m going to miss him dearly.”

Ted Paliwoda is a Chief Utility Estimator for Creamer and has been with the company for 36 years. He knew Walsh well and, like Maroney, marveled at his work ethic. “It was second to none,” Paliwoda said. “And I don’t think anyone can replace him. He’s a one-of-a-kind type of person. He knew the business inside and out and made it his business to know it inside and out. And, if he didn’t know it, he learned it.”

What is There to Say About Joe Walsh?

Reflections on Joe

“Joe Walsh was a very good man. He was a special leader who touched the hearts of many people. He was a genuine individual who made those around him feel appreciated. When he interacted with our business leaders, he truly listened to understand. He will be greatly missed by everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.” – Russ Becker, CEO & President, APi Group “I had a recent conversation with Joe and shared with him what an impact he has had on my life. I told him that he was the best leader that I ever worked with and over the past twelve years I had learned a great deal from him.” – Paul Anovick, Executive Coach, Anovick Associates via LinkedIn “Joe was an amazing leader, trusted confidant, and mentor. He was one of the finest in the industry.” – Rich Pohlidal, Director of Business Development at Redaptive Inc. via LinkedIn “Joe had a inspring swagger in meetings that I remember vividly.

Class act.” - Brandon Young, President & CEO, Young Management & Consulting via LinkedIn “Joe treated everyone with the same respect, he was a great leader.” – Stephanie Camps via Facebook “Joe was a great leader and I considered him to be a friend too.

My time spent working at J. Fletcher Creamer will always be

remembered as fun, challenging and appreciated - thanks to Joe” – Robert Biase via Facebook “I’m sad to see a great boss and kind man go he would show up to a job and put things to the side and would come shake your hand and ask how the family is doing. I give him a high respect” – Chris Ferise via Facebook “That gregarious smile, that hearty laugh, you owned the room.

Was such a great friend to Michael during his struggles. You and Dawn were always right there when needed. Was an honor to share the time we did together” – Beth Servidio via Thompson Memorial Home “My sincerest condolences to the Walsh family. I worked with Joe at JFC (I am at the front desk) and he was always a very kind, warm and funny person. He worked hard, and was great at what he did and it always showed. He made sure to greet every single person, and knew everyone by name, never forgetting who they were and what they contributed to the company. That is the type of boss/manager that is one of a kind, and I'm so happy to have met him and worked with him. Lots of love and light to the entire family and all close friends. He continues to live on through all of you.” – Jacinda Padilla via Legacy.com

7

“I was proud of the success Joe had at Creamer and APi,” said Esposito, who is a Business Development Manager. “I was by his side when he started his career at Creamer and at the end, I was still there. I can’t express the loss everyone feels not having him around. We appreciated the confidence he had in all of us as we did in him.”

“He was a workaholic. Whenever you traveled with him, he would always be late to meet in the lobby of a hotel because he would be on the computer or a call, which made us run through airports to catch a flight. We had some memorable trips. In a meeting, he wouldn’t ask you a question that he didn’t know the answer to and when you thought you had all the answers he would need, he’d find that question you didn’t have the answer to. He kept everyone on their toes.”

“I appreciated that. It allowed me to see what I couldn’t see at the time [he assigned it]. When all was said and done, you’d look back and say, okay, he had the foresight to see that potential in people. He had an encouraging demeanor. You’d see him interact with all different people at all levels of management and he was respectful, challenging people to do their best. He didn’t ask of anyone what he wasn’t willing to do himself.”

Elizabeth Alvarez could attest to how Walsh kept everyone engaged. She was his assistant and spent the better part of the last two years working directly with him. Alvarez, who had also worked with Walsh on and off over the previous dozen or so years prior to becoming his assistant, pushed people to be the best they could be, instilling confidence in them along the way.

“The thing that stands out is the balance that he held between being firm and fair,” Alvarez said. “He challenged you. He pushed you even if you didn’t believe in what you were doing. He challenged you by assigning projects that first you would think ‘Why me?’ He absolutely did that with me. Here it is, these are the parameters, get it done. And then he would not check in because he had all the confidence in the world even if I didn’t that it would get done.”

Joe with the team at a planning meeting.

There was a great deal that Walsh was willing to do himself with much of it going beyond the scope of the normal boss-employee relationship. Simply ask Creamer Project Manager Patrick Decicco, who experienced Walsh’s generosity first hand.

Decicco’s personal life is unique in that he adopted two of his grandchildren to raise as his own. His daughter has battled a drug addiction for several years so Decicco stepped in nearly six years ago and began raising them.

When one of the boys was having problems at school it was clearly taking a toll on Decicco, who reported to Walsh from 2011 to 2018. Walsh took notice.

“Joe would always ask how my grandsons were; he knew my story on how I adopted the two boys from my daughter who was battling a drug addiction” Decicco said. “The boys were 2 and 8 at the time. There was one day in particular, I remember I was very upset, my 8-year-old was having issues in school. He was getting bullied. Joe sensed something was wrong with me that day, he asked if I was okay. I explained what was going on in my private life and Joe said can I offer you advice?

“Of course, Joe mentioned I should sign him up for self-defense classes, and in the meantime I could bring him to Joe’s house and he would give him boxing lessons. I asked if he was kidding. He told me do you see me smiling? Joe told me he would do anything for kids, he was involved in his towns little league and basketball programs. I thought to myself, this important professional business man wants to take time out of his busy life to help my boy. You could hear in his voice how much he cared about kids. Obviously I didn’t take him up on the offer but he was serious.”

One of the places his colleagues fondly remembered him – the golf course.

6

Andrew Wood, Creamer’s Vice President of Administration & Chief Financial Officer, knew Walsh for over a quarter century.

They both joined the company around the same time and quickly developed a close relationship while working up the ladder to their ultimate leadership roles as APi Segment Leaders. He said “Walsh is a one-in-a-million guy, the type of magnetic person you only come across once in a lifetime. Anyone who was lucky

enough to have had Joe as a friend and colleague, is lucky enough.” Wood also said, “Joe was such a good person and a fantastic leader with great vision, respect for others, and genuine humility.” He noted, “APi is full of former military officers and military academy graduates who have been around many great leaders in their career, it was such a testament to Joe when several reached out and told me “Joe was one of the top leaders who has positively impacted their lives. “He lived his life with amazing discipline and a work ethic second to none. His thirst for knowledge and constant learning made him an expert in construction, the construction industry in general and running a business. As such, Joe was always able to grow people and challenge anyone to be the best they could be, whether it was a foreman out on a job or an accountant in the office. He was the ultimate team coach and knew that ‘Super Bowl’ teams were not built around a single player or position but required excellence across the whole team.”

“Nobody ever left a meeting with Joe feeling like he didn’t want to try harder or do better. That’s because Joe loved this company, this industry and the people who make it their careers. Joe was dedicated to ensuring the professional growth and high-quality careers for all. His level of commitment and willingness to invest in people is illustrated by the Training and Development Center developed under his direction and vision as President. We will be renaming the facility after Joe in his memory and in gratitude for his outstanding leadership and deep commitment to all of the J. Fletcher Creamer and Son, Inc. family.”

Terrell Maroney, a senior estimator, has been with Creamer for 19 years. He started out at the company’s Los Angeles office and

spent 12 years there before moving East when the office closed.

He marveled at Walsh’s work ethic, particularly when he came to California. Maroney said that Walsh would remain on New Jersey time and be up and working before the sun.

“The man was tireless and had an incredible work ethic,” Maroney said. “He would come to office and just go all day long.

By the time I came home I was exhausted. I don’t know how he did it. His work ethic and attention to detail was incredible and that pushed me a lot. He had a good way of challenging people.

And getting them to up their game to his level.

“The other thing is that he made everyone feel important, no matter who they were or what position they had. He was always up front and made you feel like you were part of the operation. He always made me feel that my job was just as important as his to the organization. Maybe I had less responsibility, but he always made me feel like I was important. He always wanted my ideas and suggestions because he thought they were as important as his. At the end of the day, he might have gone with his own idea and though he didn’t agree with mine he always made me feel like it was important. He was an incredible man and I’m going to miss him dearly.”

Ted Paliwoda is a Chief Utility Estimator for Creamer and has been with the company for 36 years. He knew Walsh well and, like Maroney, marveled at his work ethic. “It was second to none,” Paliwoda said. “And I don’t think anyone can replace him. He’s a one-of-a-kind type of person. He knew the business inside and out and made it his business to know it inside and out. And, if he didn’t know it, he learned it.”

What is There to Say About Joe Walsh?

Reflections on Joe

“Joe Walsh was a very good man. He was a special leader who touched the hearts of many people. He was a genuine individual who made those around him feel appreciated. When he interacted with our business leaders, he truly listened to understand. He will be greatly missed by everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.” – Russ Becker, CEO & President, APi Group “I had a recent conversation with Joe and shared with him what an impact he has had on my life. I told him that he was the best leader that I ever worked with and over the past twelve years I had learned a great deal from him.” – Paul Anovick, Executive Coach, Anovick Associates via LinkedIn “Joe was an amazing leader, trusted confidant, and mentor. He was one of the finest in the industry.” – Rich Pohlidal, Director of Business Development at Redaptive Inc. via LinkedIn “Joe had a inspring swagger in meetings that I remember vividly.

Class act.” - Brandon Young, President & CEO, Young Management & Consulting via LinkedIn “Joe treated everyone with the same respect, he was a great leader.” – Stephanie Camps via Facebook “Joe was a great leader and I considered him to be a friend too.

My time spent working at J. Fletcher Creamer will always be

remembered as fun, challenging and appreciated - thanks to Joe” – Robert Biase via Facebook “I’m sad to see a great boss and kind man go he would show up to a job and put things to the side and would come shake your hand and ask how the family is doing. I give him a high respect” – Chris Ferise via Facebook “That gregarious smile, that hearty laugh, you owned the room.

Was such a great friend to Michael during his struggles. You and Dawn were always right there when needed. Was an honor to share the time we did together” – Beth Servidio via Thompson Memorial Home “My sincerest condolences to the Walsh family. I worked with Joe at JFC (I am at the front desk) and he was always a very kind, warm and funny person. He worked hard, and was great at what he did and it always showed. He made sure to greet every single person, and knew everyone by name, never forgetting who they were and what they contributed to the company. That is the type of boss/manager that is one of a kind, and I'm so happy to have met him and worked with him. Lots of love and light to the entire family and all close friends. He continues to live on through all of you.” – Jacinda Padilla via Legacy.com

7

101 East Broadway Hackensack, NJ 07601

Donations in Joe’s memory can be made to the following organizations: The Monmouth County SPCA www.monmouthcountyspca.org Shrewsbury Hose Company www.shrewsburyhosecompany.com Shrewsbury First Aid www.shrewsburyfirstaid.org Shrewsbury Recreation www.shrewsburynj.myrec.com Pipeline is a newsletter published by J. Fletcher Creamer & Son, Inc. 101 East Broadway Hackensack, NJ 07601 201-488-9800

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For more information visit JFCSON.COM

Vehicles from several New Jersey contractors line the streets to honor Joe’s memory.