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Since it’s been more than 23 years since
graduating from Penn State, I thought it was about time to check in.
After graduating I moved to the Great Pacific Northwest and began working for
John Graham and Co. (Architects and Engineers) in July 1979. At that
time, JG was still doing prestigious projects in Seattle (its greatest claim
to fame is the design of the Space Needle for the ’62 World's Fair—before
before my time). It was a great experience for a new graduate, but after
a year and a half I had become bored with spending 40+ hours a week at a
drafting table and yearned to get closer to the “nuts and bolts” of
construction. By the way, John Graham and Company was bought out by DLR
in the early 90s and DLR still maintains an office in Seattle. In April
1981, I went to work as an HVAC Design Engineer for PSF Mechanical, Inc., an
HVAC Design/Build Contractor in Seattle. I spent the next sixteen years
there and progressed to Chief Engineer, and then to Project Manager. By
the mid 1990s, PSF was the HVAC Design Build Contractor for all new Nordstrom
retail stores in the US, which gave me the opportunity to travel to projects
located in California, Oregon, Chicago, Dallas, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Washington D.C. area, Cleveland, and New York. In October 1997, I left
PSF Mechanical and started my own company, Building Systems Resources, Inc. (BSR),
as a construction management consultant specializing in Mechanical and
Electrical systems coordination. BSR is a one-person company with a
small office on Mercer Island, WA (an island in Lake Washington just east of
Seattle). Since starting the company, I have been involved in projects
ranging from small commercial office remodels to large high-tech and biotech
tenant improvements and new construction, and very high-end residential
projects.
In 1987, I met and married my lovely wife Jerri and have two great teen-age
boys: J.T. (14), and Matt (13). I maintain contact with fellow Penn
State AE’s in the Seattle area: Connie (Weber) Santroch, ’77,
Kevin Connell, ’78, Tom and Beth (Kern) Jensen, (both ’84), Steve
Van Vleet, ’84, Bryce Taylor, ’85, and Bruce Higgs, ’79.
All remain in the AE industry and are doing well. Mike Thoresen, ’79, who
was recruited by John Graham & Co. in 1979 along with Bruce Higgs and me,
is now working in NYC for Syska and Hennessy. If you find the occasion
to visit Seattle, please contact one of us so we can all get together.
Lastly, I would like to congratulate the AE Class of 2003 and future graduates
for choosing a major that prepares them for exciting and fulfilling
careers. I am not aware of program that prepares its graduates for their
future professions better than a B.A.E. from Penn State. Good luck to
all!
Tom Neely, ’79 |
