In general, we don’t celebrate the good deeds and accomplishments of our friends, family, and co-workers enough. The fact is, there are plenty of people in this world who spend plenty of their hard earned time, money, blood, sweat, and tears making a difference in peoples’ lives. Many of those people happen to be construction workers and this 2016 countdown will hopefully serve as inspiration to our reader’s to go above and beyond and use your skills to enrich someone else’s life.
They Rescue Deer That Are Stuck in Mud
Even though construction equipment is extremely heavy and extremely powerful, with the right operator in the cab, the machines can be as soft and nurturing as a pillow. Heck, who would have ever thought they would see someone fully assemble and dress a hot dog with an excavator? Turns out, excavators can also save animals’ lives.
According to Storyful, who posted the video to Youtube, Bill Davis was alerted that an intruder was on his site. When he got there to investigate, he found a young deer almost fully covered in a patch of deep mud. Thinking on his feet, Bill and a colleague got to work with a nearby excavator that they had on hand. After ever so gently scooping the deer up into the bucket, he was able to place it on the ground, seemingly unharmed, but clearly confused.
They Help Build Ultra-Accessible Water Parks
Backed by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) Charities organization, construction workers from dozens of different firms banded together to build the first ever ultra-accessible water park. Morgan’s Inspiration Island, as the park is called, is located in San Antonio, TX and is part of Morgan’s Wonderland Theme Park. AGC Charities raised over $350,000 for the project, according to Construction Dive, and has been specifically designed for special needs individuals. The project, which is expected to open in April of 2017, is being managed by the Linbeck Group, a general contractor, and AGC of San Antonio.
They Help Renovate Homes of Families in Need
A family with two children with special needs were in desperate need of upgrades to their existing home in Nashville, TN. That’s when a group of workers from Turner Construction and the charitable organization known as Tucker’s House stepped in. Tucker’s House specializes in helping retrofit the homes of families with special needs, in order to make the home more accessible for. According to News Channel 5, Turner Construction has worked with Tucker’s House other times in the past, as well. For this specific project, 20 people helped make a bathroom wheelchair accessible as well as add a walk-in closet to a bedroom.
They Help Sick Children Realize Their Dreams
A 4-year-old named Trevor has spent the last 2 years battling medulloblastoma, a fast growing, high-grade tumor in the brain, and spending much of his life going in and out of the doctor’s office. Being that his favorite pastime is to pretending to be a construction worker, the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Ruscilli Construction Company teamed up to make Trevor a contractor for a day. During his day, he was able to “drive” excavation equipment and lay a brick and mortar wall, according to Ruscilli. Many other contractors assisted in the day, including Mr. Excavator, RVM Construction and Jendco Safety.
Full story: Trevor’s Wish to be a Construction Worker! | Ruscilli
They Build and Donate Homes to Wounded Veterans
PulteGroup first launched their Built to Honor program in 2013 and, since then, they have built 40 homes for military personnel who were injured during their service. Their goal is to say “thank you” to those who have risked their lives defending the United States by offering mortgage-free homes to returning vets around the country. So far, they’ve built homes in 15 different states, including California, Texas, Florida, New Jersey and Michigan. You can watch the highlights of the program’s 40 homes below:
They Play 'Where's Waldo' With Kids in Hospital
Jason Haney, a foreman for JJ White Inc. in South Bend, Indiana, built and painted an 8 foot tall Waldo along with his daughter and has been hiding it around his job site since April. The idea came from personal experience, he told Good Morning America, as his daughter spent a considerable amount of time in and out of hospitals as a child. Together, their goal was to help the kids take their mind off of being in a hospital and brighten their day a little bit. The hospitals media relations specialist, Heidi Prescott, told ABC News that the kids can wait to get to the playroom to try and find Waldo each day.
They Help Save Lives
As an unnamed construction worker were working on a project in Clearwater, Florida, they heard a woman scream and saw a struggle. When they ran over to help, they saw a man trying to rape her, according to WTSP. Though he was behind a fence, he was able to yell enough to get the man to flee before more harm could be done. The man was dubbed a hero, but he didn’t want any credit. He even refused to give the news his name and did not want his face shown.
Full Story: Construction worker recounts saving pregnant woman from sexual assault | WTSP
They Help Stop Purse Snatchers
In Winnipeg, Canada, a man allegedly stole a purse from a local actress names Yvette Jones, who was on her way to a photoshoot. After she fell to the ground and started to scream for help, nearby construction workers rushed to help her and one even tracked down the thief and recovered her purse. The workers even stayed to help her disinfect her wounds, after she fell, and and gave her bandages. Jones asked the workers for their company’s name so that she could send them a thank you card, but they declined, as they didn’t want the attention.
Full story: Local Construction workers foil downtown purse-snatching | Winnepeg Free Press
They Replace the Roofs of People in Need
After a Spring hail storm rolled through San Antonio, many resident’s roofs were badly damaged. Not all people were in financial standing to be covered by insurance, however. Hill Country Construction Company, saw a need to help people and vowed to replace one roof per month for free. In April, the group fixed the roof of 87-year-old Rosie Morgan, who was ecstatic when they told her what they were going to do.
Full story: Local construction company replaces roofs at no cost | Fox 29 San Antonio
They Rescue Trapped Bears
After a giant bear reportedly got stuck in a cesspit after trying to eat dead chickens at a nearby chicken farm in Turkey, construction crews rushed to the scene to begin the rescue effort. Using a hammer attachment on an excavator, the operator chipped away at the ground and concrete in an effort to make a hole big enough for the bear to escape. As you can probably imagine, the bear wasn’t too happy about being stuck in the hole and then having a powerful robot arm coming after him, so it let out a few big growls before finally breaking free.
It was definitely impressive that the operator was able to get the bear out without harming it and I’m sure the bear will appreciate the effort more later on when it calms down. I don’t think I would have been nearly as brave as the cameraman, especially when the bear got out of the hole and looked like it wanted to devour everything in its path.
They Surprise Young Patients at a Children’s Hospital
At Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, a Friday dance party takes place every week to celebrate the young cancer patients making it through another week of treatment. Skanska Construction happened to be building a research facility directly across from the children’s hospital and, according to Fox 13, they would join in on the dance party themselves on occasion. When the workers heard that one of the children was having a birthday, they chose to surprise her with a special sign and brought it up to her room for her. Small acts of kindness like this can help people going through difficult times, and the young girl was teary eyed as she thanked the workers.
Full story: Construction workers surprise young cancer patient | Fox 13
Later in the year, the same group of workers from Skanska surprised the children with a giant red sleigh filled with christmas presents that were dropped from a 195-foot-tall crane. There were over 1,200 presents handed out to children throughout the hospital. Many of the workers even dressed as elves and the crane operator was dressed as Santa Claus.
Full story: Construction workers, Santa deliver smiles to children at hospital | Fox 26
The earth can be a sort of an unmarked time capsule in many areas. It holds secrets of the past, some of which were hoped to never be found, but others that people dream of finding. Almost every project requires excavation or demolition in some way, so keep your eyes peeled for the next great discovery!