It’s been two weeks since we closed the nomination process for Klein Tools’ Electrician of the Year, and we’ve spent the last couple of weeks sifting through nearly 200 nominations! I have to say, I have really enjoyed reading about all the nominees.
There are some truly good people who work in the trade. People who represent all types of backgrounds and nearly every one of the 50 states. They are young and old, men and women, union and independent. They are people who work hard every day, and sometimes through the night. They take great pride in completing each job the right way, and think nothing of doing a little extra to help out a customer. These are people who graciously pass on their knowledge and expertise to the next generation of electricians. People who use their skills, time, and energy to give back to their community and to those in need. We even received nominations for people who found themselves as unlikely heroes.
Our six Regional Winners embody many, if not all, of these characteristics, and we’ll introduce them to you next week. We’ll name our Grand Prize winner, our Electrician of the Year, in January.
I want to share a story of an electrician in the Chicago area, who would’ve been an excellent nominee for Electrician of the Year. His story appeared in the Chicago Tribune earlier this week.
Often times, in downtown Chicago, you will see a handful of skyscrapers lit up with giant messages. For example, when the Chicago Blackhawks were vying for the Stanley Cup, you could see “Go Hawks” spelled out in the windows of several buildings. Just last week, one building in Chicago read “Thanks Chris.”
Chris Gillott is an electrician and he started the window message tradition 14 years ago. He used the windows of the downtown building he worked in to pay tribute to Chicago Bears running back, Walter Payton, after his untimely death.
Unfortunately, Chris also died too young, last week. And to pay tribute to him, Chris’ co-workers worked tirelessly to leave him a message of thanks.
The Tribune article tells much more about Chris and the impact he had on those who knew him. If you have a moment to read it, please do.
We’d also like to take an opportunity to thank everyone who took the time to nominate someone for Electrician of the Year. And thank you to the thousands of electricians across the country who go above and beyond doing what they love.