Platt Construction Flagger Deborah Green went away to college to pursue her dreams and study theatre. College wasn’t working out due to financial reasons, and Green moved home. Green’s father and uncles worked in construction, and Green says her father used to share stories about his days on the job site, specifically about a particular…
Doral Corporation Journeywoman Ironworker Becoming a journeywoman ironworker was not the original plan for Chelsea Tappa. “Although if I had known about ironworkers, it probably would have been… I always liked to build things and climb on things when I was little,” Tappa said. Tappa originally went to college to pursue a career as a…
C.D. Smith Journeywoman Carpenter LaSonya Donald was training to be an automotive technician and studying human services at Milwaukee Area Technical College when she enrolled in her first carpentry class. “I actually fell in love with it, so I stuck with it,” Donald said. Upon graduating, Donald enrolled in BIG STEP, or Building Industry Group…
P.L. Freeman Co. Third-Year Sheet Metal Apprentice Jennifer Bruss is a third-year sheet metal apprentice working on the Wisconsin Center expansion project. She found her way to construction by way of her father, a master carpenter. “Just seeing what my dad did and seeing how much detail was in the finished work, I was always…
Self-taught artist and multi-media storyteller Rosy Petri was born and raised in Milwaukee. But her love for working with fabric as a medium for her art is deeply rooted in the South and her family history. “Both of my grandmothers were quilters,” Petri shared. “One was a very traditional piecing quilter. She did Baltimore album…
Nicolas Lampert is well known throughout the Milwaukee community as an artist, published author and influential art instructor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. But spend a little time getting to know him and you will discover he sees himself more as a participant and chronicler of the fight for social justice. “Art is, in my…
Baird Center public art will tell stories of Milwaukee’s rich culture and history When a visitor enters through Baird Center’s main entrance, they are immediately greeted by Syl the security guard’s watchful eye. The hyperrealistic sculpture, crafted by Serbian-American artist and Milwaukee resident Marc Sijan, is a Baird Center delight, bringing both joy and a…
How the Multi-Craft Core Curriculum (MC3) program is helping diversify talent on the job-site When the Wisconsin Center District was given the green light to expand the Baird Center (formerly the Wisconsin Center), its leadership committed to ambitious diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) goals for the project. However, once the hiring of construction and trades…
United Way and UPAF to benefit from proceeds of May 16, 2024 celebration MILWAUKEE– (October 16, 2023) – The $456 million dollar Baird Center expansion will be opening in magnificent fashion with a not-to-be-missed gala celebration on May 16, 2024. Held in the new, spectacular rooftop Baird Ballroom with its breathtaking views of the Milwaukee…
