My Granny once told me "Sometimes you have to toot your own horn!"
Well I'm here to toot a horn for a Grandson if thats OK.

Bailey, age 20. Parents divorced. Started down the wrong path in High School... skipping class, wrecked a couple trucks including a very nice one of his Dad's, lost his Drivers License, DUI, and was flunking out of school... Kind of a like father like son deal it was to be honest.

But I guess he realized he was headed the wrong direction at some point. He completed school, quit drinking, regained his drivers license and took a construction job and has saved 5 or 6 grand towards buying his own truck. He went all in, working every day after school and Saturdays for almost two years, but received no benefits at all and no withholding... Basically it seems he was treated like an undocumented workers on the crew. But, He has just changed jobs and works for a company that does tower work. He travels over a few state area but is home every weekend. I don't know if he will learn enough via OJT or like it in the long run... we will see. He learned on his former job that he apparently has zero fear of heights and has climbed at least to 400 feet so far last I talked to him.

Hoping the best for him from a proud PaPa.
Thanks for hearing me out!
I'll include some photos...

He loves to fish and hunt, mostly fish.



First deer... Cant remember his age.



Senior picture.



Geared up! Safety FIRST!



He took this of his trainer... at 300 feet.

Uplifting story. Thanks for sharing it.

Michael

quote:

Originally posted by mdblanton:
Uplifting

hehehe

Great story. Thanks much for sharing.

Silent

That's a great feeling, isn't it?

I have a similar story, but it was the Marine Corps that snatched a knot in my grandson's skivvies.

I’m so glad for you, and him. Continuing to hope for the best for you- and him.

Thank you for the story. It makes me feel a bit better after a rough week.

Great story. The part about the first company angers me ("undocumented worker"), but it did help him to get started. It seems tower work suits him. Not many people can or are willing to do it. He'll probably always need to travel if he keeps that up, but that's not a bad thing either.

Don't knock OJT. To a motivated learner, being self-taught (which OJT is, really) is a powerful way to learn. The only downside is you end up with gaps in your knowledge - you don't know what you don't know. Hopefully he has a good mentor, that will help. And if there are any certifications he can work toward (I don't know that industry, but I would think there would be something), that will help his career too.

Let him know your imaginary friends are rooting for him!

Up, Up, and Away...

You can lead a horse to water...

I was 19 when I realized that my actions were not going to lead me to success in the future. While not a DUI or a license suspension a string of traffic tickets by the time I was 18 and a lot of skipping high school classes together without a diploma spelled disaster ahead.

It wasn’t easy, working full time and attending night school for my HS diploma were two steps forward.

All and all I accomplished much more than I ever expected, sometimes it just takes a little longer for some of us to wake up.

Glad to hear he’s on the right path!

Good for him. And you. I can tell you’re proud of what’s he’s done. So good to hear stories like this.

Like others have said. That is great to hear for him. There are still great opportunities for those with some ambition and drive to do for themselves, what no one can do for them.

I hope he has a great life and inspires others. Thanks for posting. I feel a bit inspired this morning by reading this.

Good to hear! Fine looking young man and I wish him all the best.

I have a grandson, 29 years old and going on 15 or so, very intelligent with considerable artistic talent. Unfortunately, since he was 14 he has completely rejected every opportunity, refuses to accept any responsibility. Total doper (any drug, any time) and a stone cold thief. After 3 adult felony convictions he doesn't seem to understand that conditions of probation or terms of parole are more than just a few suggestions!

Last I heard was when he found out that it was not a very good idea to pay your bail bondsman with counterfeit $20 bills. Needless to say, it is now impossible for him to get out of jail pending the new charges, and I doubt that his parole officer will provide a good report at his next sentencing.

9 grandchildren, 5 great-grandchildren (#6 due any day now). I love them all, but they have to make their own choices and pay their own dues.

Thanks for sharing all the nice replies, did me good to tell the story... never know about tomorrow but today is looking up.

Dang, what a great kid!

Fantastic. You have a right to be proud.

Great story. Good on him.