May 11, 2005 12:13 PM CDT

Craftsmanship on Display at Masonry Showcase

By Melissa Polivka

The sixth annual International Masonry Skills Challenge at Masonry Showcase in Chicago showed off the best apprentices our industry has to offer. Twenty-one contestants from across the country came to compete in first, second, and third year skill levels. This year's designs were both innovative and difficult, as they incorporated products such as stone and cast stone.

The final projects looked great, and the apprentices should be very proud of their three hours of hard work. The judges were very impressed with the quality of the apprentices' construction, and were tasked with the tough decision of choosing the winners. Here are the results:

Thomas Sautkus

First Year Apprentices 1st place: Thomas Sautkus District Council Training Center, Addison, Illinois 2nd place: Brian Legarth F&R Masonry, Valley View, Ohio 3rd place: Chad Galloway Galloway's Masonry, Conyers, Georgia

Troy Holmes

Second Year Apprentices 1st place: Troy Holmes Foti Construction, Cleveland, Ohio 2nd place: Christopher Kowalczyk District Council Training Center, Addison, Illinois 3rd place: Juan Capetillo DMG, Arlington, Texas

John Nero

Third Year Apprentices 1st place: John Nero F, B & S Masonry, Stow, Ohio 2nd place: Chris Pruitt Masonry Specialist, Chattanooga, Tennessee 3rd place: Jaime Salas Brodie Contractors, Raleigh, North Carolina

MCAA would like to thank the judges from across the country for the donation of their expertise, and we would thank the sponsors and materials donors for their contributions.

Contest sponsors: ACCI, Building Stone Institute, County Materials, Fraco, ICS Blount, Lafarge North America, MK Diamond Products, Multiquip, Non-Stop Scaffolding, Quikrete, and Spec Mix.

Materials contributed by: ACCI, BIA, Buechel Stone, EZ Grout, Gatorback, Glen Gery Brick, Illinois Brick, Marshalltown, Northfield Block, and Quikrete.

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About the Author

Melissa Polivka spent time as the Director of Marketing, Director of Membership, and Director of Workforce Development for the Mason Contractors Association of America.