Ken D.
The better part of my 40-year work life has been in the communications field. One of the things I’ve enjoyed the most is being out in the field and at different locations, rather than going to the same office every single day. Windemuller is only the third employer I’ve had doing communications work and I’m happy here.
I joined the company in 2014 after deciding I was ready for a change. At first, I took an opportunity with the electrical side of the business. But a year later, my experience and background drew me back to the world of communications. Then in 2018, I became a foreman in the Traverse City office. Right now, we’re doing all the communications for a huge retirement community in the area – computers, TV, telephone, and sound.
My journey in this field dates back to the early 1980s, when post-high school I went to an electronics trade school – studying radio, electronics, and television. Afterward, my first job was fixing pinball machines, video games (remember Pac-Man?) and jukeboxes. I went to a lot of bars in the Grand Rapids area. After a couple of years of that, I took a job doing telephone systems and sound systems and when I relocated to the Traverse City area in 1993, I stayed in that same line of work and ultimately landed at Windemuller.
Even though a lot has changed with technology over the decades – and some of the systems I used to work with are now obsolete – the foundation of the work is the same and I enjoy it when I get the chance to teach something to the younger guys working with me. When there is a system that isn’t working, there is a lot of troubleshooting involved – that hasn’t changed. I like when they ask me questions and I can share my experience.
Windemuller has been a great employer for me. The company is very supportive and you are valued for the work you do. It feels like family here.