A Career Well Spent

A few minutes into touring the GE Aviation plant that my dad has worked in for the last 12 years, I started to notice something; folks were looking at us odd and smiling as our mini tram, filled with some of my dad’s friends and family, rolled through. I asked some of the people who worked there about this, including my dad, and they said it was because you never see this. In fact, my dad said in the twelve years he has been there, he has never seen a tour rolling through like this. Wait, what?!?

Turns out, to no one’s surprise who knows him, my dad has some big fans at GE. People who were willing to “ask forgiveness” rather than permission in order to make sure they honored my dad well as part of him retiring.?

My dad comes from an era and place where going to college was the exception (he did not go), and instead most did their best to get a good job and start earning an honest living. And work, he has! Dad has worked, HARD, with his hands, doing manual labor, often in harsh conditions, for the last 49 years.?

One of the biggest blessings that my parents bestowed on me was a healthy work ethic. I knew growing up that we didn’t have a lot of money, but I also knew that my dad worked hard, and often long, to minimize the effects of that. He was determined to provide a better life than he had been afforded, and, without directly saying it, challenged us to do the same.?

How did he do this? Here’s a great example. We are at dad’s party on a Thursday, the last week of July, and I ask, so is today or tomorrow your last time clocking in? “No, I’m working Saturday to get a little more overtime in.” The last week of the man’s career, and he grabbed some voluntary overtime so that he could bring home a little more money for the family, and because he wanted to make sure he was leaving things in a good spot for others.

Going back to that tour, I wondered why so many people went out of their way to make sure dad was taken care of on his last day, so I started chatting with some of his coworkers and it became obvious. Before I go any further, let me just summarize it this way, it would be hard to overstate the level of respect and admiration that folks have for my dad. Why? He was known as the guy who went above and beyond to take care of others. He took on countless tasks and efforts that he didn’t have to. Others might (and many would, much to my dad’s chagrin), take the opportunity to coast or work on personal stuff once their work was done, dad looked for ways to add value. He was a champion for worker safety, to the extent he obviously got teased about it, but as many echoed (his bosses included) during that day, “this place is undoubtedly safer, and not just his immediate area, the entire plant, because of Randy Metzner.”?

Another thing he took on, which would require many unpaid hours of service, even after he went home, was helping his coworkers as a voluntary worker’s compensation rep for his union. As many have told me over the years, “your dad would have made a damn good lawyer!”, to which I replied, I’m sure he would have, but that’s only because of the crazy amount of hours he dedicates to researching and preparing for his cases.?

He wouldn’t use these words, but I sure can. My dad is an incredible servant leader. He has gone out of his way to take care of his family, friends, and the countless co-workers he has had over his half-century of hard work, loyalty, and dedication. This, my friends, is how to live a good life: take care of those around you. I’m so grateful to have had this modeled for me throughout my life (by both my mom and dad).?

Some of the lessons that I’ll continue to draw on from my dad’s career:

• Work hard, harder than others are willing, because if God gives us the ability and opportunity, we ought to take advantage of it
• Treat people well, and not just being polite, go out of your way to serve others
• Be loyal to your friends, family, and co-workers
• Do the right thing, even when it require extra time and effort, and even if it doesn’t benefit you
• Pursue hobbies that help you enjoy life, and not starting at retirement! You don’t have to wait to have meaningful hobbies and to spend time with loved ones.

Often times you see people rapidly decline in retirement because they lose their sense of purpose or even just because they become sedentary after a career of moving. I don’t worry a bit about this with my dad. His “weekends” have forever been filled with work, whether that was overtime, volunteering, working on a project around his house, or helping a family/friend with their projects. And, of course, the camping! One of the things that dad has enjoyed throughout his life is camping, and fortunately, he and mom have been able to continue to enjoy this as they age (by graduating into a camper from a tent). So, I’m not worried about dad. Between projects, helping friends and family, being with his grandkids, and pursuing his passions (which I know will lead to some new hobbies), he is going to stay plenty busy in retirement!

“This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink, and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them — for this is their lot.”?

— Ecclesiastes 5:18

Congratulations on your retirement, pops, I sure hope you enjoy it because you earned it!