SPECIAL FOCUS
Thousands Raised for Safety and Education Members remember Dave Schulz at Colorado Golf Tournament
First Place Team: JD Daniels, Zack Ganzell, Brian Hildebrand, and Austin Mouw of Bigge Crane and Rigging Co., presented with the award by SEAA President David Deem.
Denver local Kayleen McCabe, representing the McCabe Foundation, tees off.
Sponsors are a critical piece of the fundraising project.
Lee Shaw of S.L. Shaw company and Nathan Bloch with SDS2 share ideas during Peer Group discussion.
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he sold-out Dave Schulz Memorial Golf Tournament supporting SEAA’s safety and education projects raised about $13,000. “For our first venture west, turnout for the tournament and participation in the Meet & Greet held the previous night was outstanding,” said Pete Gum, Executive Director. More than 80 people registered for the Meet & Greet and 60 golfers competed in the tournament. “We appreciate the support of sponsors, who made this a successful meeting,” said Gum. The tournament was held at the Omni Interlocken Golf Club in Broomfield, Colo., on September 16, where a scramble was played on three adjacent courses. Golfers repeatedly claimed that the greens, fairways, and mountain scenery made this one of the most beautiful courses they had ever played. The tournament returns to its original location in North Carolina in 2023. “We were thrilled that Denver local Kayleen McCabe, representing the McCabe Foundation, joined us,” said Carrie Gulajan, SEAA Events Chairperson. McCabe, who is a construction industry celebrity and former SEAA convention keynote speaker, is an advocate for careers in the construction trades. Learn more at kayleenmccabe.com.
24 | THE STEEL ERECTORS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
Peer Group Discusses Recruiting, Retention The meeting also included its first-ever Peer Group, a small discussion group of local companies which met the previous day, prior to the Meet & Greet. The theme of the discussion was recruiting and retention. “Two years ago, SEAA’s Board of Directors made a strategic decision to re-form committees, opening them up to members at large in order to provide more opportunities for member engagement. As those positions have been filled, we are now implementing phase two— local peer groups,” said Jack Nix, Membership Chairperson. Facilitated by Tucker Smith of BBSI and Victor Garcia of Denver’s Flawless Steel Welding, the group of about 10 shared struggles and best practices. “Peer groups are a safe place to speak openly. That dialog is critical to giving SEAA members in a local area connections and resources for improving their businesses and the industry,” said Nix. Following the Peer Group, area erectors, fabricators, engineering firms, and suppliers learned about new benefits of SEAA membership and heard about product and services solutions from sponsors Kenwood, Nelson Stud Welding, and Well Works.
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