Two Bricklayers and Allied Craftworker Apprentices Win International Competitions
Local 5 PCC apprentice Donald Murray, III works on his first-place project.
Bricklayers and Allied Craftworker Local 5 apprentice Donald Murray, III gave himself a great early birthday present when he took home the title of the nation’s top Point, Cleaning and Caulking (PCC) apprentice in an International competition.
Murray, a fourth-year apprentice, earned first place in the BAC/IMI International Apprenticeship Contest, which took place on Sept. 23-24 in Boston at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center.
About two weeks before his birthday, Murray won the title of International Craft Champion by demonstrating a mastery of the skills he learned both on the job and at the Northern Ohio Regional Training Center in Amherst – one of two training centers operated by the Bricklayers Ohio-Kentucky Administrative District Council.
All in all, Ohio apprentices showed the Buckeye State produces some of the best apprentices in the trowel trades.
In the Brick contest, Ohio apprentices took the top two spots. Garrick Manning, a fourth-year apprentice from Local 46 in Freemont, and Kurtis Sutter, a fourth-year apprentice from Local 3 in Toledo, earned first- and second-place honors respectively.
More than 70 apprentices from across the U.S. and Canada competed in the following craft competitions: Brick, PCC, stone, tile, marble, terrazzo, concrete and plaster.
They completed several challenges, most notably, building mockups that required many essential craft skills commonly used on jobsites.
“Winning this competition is a capstone to any apprentice’s career,” said Timothy Driscoll, President of the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, in a prepared statement. “The passion, preparedness, and persistence that make our members the best hands in the business were on full display at this year’s competition.”
“The contest is a testament to the hard work and dedication BAC apprentices and their instructors have put into training throughout their time in the program,” said Caryn Halifax, President of the International Masonry Institute (IMI) and IMTEF in a prepared statement.