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Retired
Jul 4, 2019 14:22:31   #
NANCYFLICK
 
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Civilian.
I started my career as the second female to work on the Allegheny River Locks & Dams. I was told the first one made life miserable for her team that I now was working with so I had hurdles to get over to earn their respect. My first day I was sent with another employee to pick up railroad ties. 10 I think it was. Anyway the guy I went with gave me immediate respect right after I picked up the other end of the 8 foot tie & put it in the dump truck like it was nothing! I admit I was very strong back in the day.
From that day forward over time I earned the others respect & they earned mine!
For 75 yrs this had been men only jobs so I had a lot to prove. I also was so fortunate to have a fellow employee to train me on all that I needed to learn & then some! These men became family & we had so much fun while we worked which made the day go fast. We worked hard too! Other than locking tow boats & recreational boats through the locks we did cement work such as large slab inclined walls, breaking up cement with Jack hammers, lots of painting & cleaning, maintenance on all equipment plus at the time there were construction workers doing rehab to the lock for 2 yrs so we had to work around all that. The rehab men preferred me to work the lock gates because I could open & close them without banging them so much, now this was done with 1 gate running by hand with a temporary cable winch & using the other hand to use the automated gate lever! To close the gates took finesse so they didn't bang shut & fall off into the water while putting them together in the mitered position. So I was pretty proud of myself!
Over the years I was able to work my way up to full time. From a WY5 temporary 8 month lock operator to a full time WY 9 lock operator leader to a WY10 being a Lock & Dam Equipment Mechanic. I knew a lot about the old original locks that by this time were over 100 yrs old! So I ended my career working at the old 4 upper closed locks trying to keep them in as workable condition as possible for the summer rec boat season that private boating people had fundraisers to pay for us to work them on weekends so they could travel back & forth between them.
It was the best job outside of my children I ever had. With lasting friendships made.

Reply
Jul 4, 2019 15:20:17   #
Carol Kelly
 
NANCYFLICK wrote:
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Civilian.
I started my career as the second female to work on the Allegheny River Locks & Dams. I was told the first one made life miserable for her team that I now was working with so I had hurdles to get over to earn their respect. My first day I was sent with another employee to pick up railroad ties. 10 I think it was. Anyway the guy I went with gave me immediate respect right after I picked up the other end of the 8 foot tie & put it in the dump truck like it was nothing! I admit I was very strong back in the day.
From that day forward over time I earned the others respect & they earned mine!
For 75 yrs this had been men only jobs so I had a lot to prove. I also was so fortunate to have a fellow employee to train me on all that I needed to learn & then some! These men became family & we had so much fun while we worked which made the day go fast. We worked hard too! Other than locking tow boats & recreational boats through the locks we did cement work such as large slab inclined walls, breaking up cement with Jack hammers, lots of painting & cleaning, maintenance on all equipment plus at the time there were construction workers doing rehab to the lock for 2 yrs so we had to work around all that. The rehab men preferred me to work the lock gates because I could open & close them without banging them so much, now this was done with 1 gate running by hand with a temporary cable winch & using the other hand to use the automated gate lever! To close the gates took finesse so they didn't bang shut & fall off into the water while putting them together in the mitered position. So I was pretty proud of myself!
Over the years I was able to work my way up to full time. From a WY5 temporary 8 month lock operator to a full time WY 9 lock operator leader to a WY10 being a Lock & Dam Equipment Mechanic. I knew a lot about the old original locks that by this time were over 100 yrs old! So I ended my career working at the old 4 upper closed locks trying to keep them in as workable condition as possible for the summer children boat season that private boating people had fundraisers to pay for us to work them on weekends so they could travel back & forth between them.
It was the best job outside of my children I ever had. With lasting friendships made.
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps ... (show quote)


You’ve lived a busy, useful life and had time to have children. Bless your heart! It’s good to meet you. This is a worthwhile place to be in your retirement. Enjoy.

Reply
Jul 4, 2019 15:29:54   #
no propaganda please Loc: moon orbiting the third rock from the sun
 
NANCYFLICK wrote:
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Civilian.
I started my career as the second female to work on the Allegheny River Locks & Dams. I was told the first one made life miserable for her team that I now was working with so I had hurdles to get over to earn their respect. My first day I was sent with another employee to pick up railroad ties. 10 I think it was. Anyway the guy I went with gave me immediate respect right after I picked up the other end of the 8 foot tie & put it in the dump truck like it was nothing! I admit I was very strong back in the day.
From that day forward over time I earned the others respect & they earned mine!
For 75 yrs this had been men only jobs so I had a lot to prove. I also was so fortunate to have a fellow employee to train me on all that I needed to learn & then some! These men became family & we had so much fun while we worked which made the day go fast. We worked hard too! Other than locking tow boats & recreational boats through the locks we did cement work such as large slab inclined walls, breaking up cement with Jack hammers, lots of painting & cleaning, maintenance on all equipment plus at the time there were construction workers doing rehab to the lock for 2 yrs so we had to work around all that. The rehab men preferred me to work the lock gates because I could open & close them without banging them so much, now this was done with 1 gate running by hand with a temporary cable winch & using the other hand to use the automated gate lever! To close the gates took finesse so they didn't bang shut & fall off into the water while putting them together in the mitered position. So I was pretty proud of myself!
Over the years I was able to work my way up to full time. From a WY5 temporary 8 month lock operator to a full time WY 9 lock operator leader to a WY10 being a Lock & Dam Equipment Mechanic. I knew a lot about the old original locks that by this time were over 100 yrs old! So I ended my career working at the old 4 upper closed locks trying to keep them in as workable condition as possible for the summer rec boat season that private boating people had fundraisers to pay for us to work them on weekends so they could travel back & forth between them.
It was the best job outside of my children I ever had. With lasting friendships made.
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps ... (show quote)


Welcome to the discussions. You sound like someone who is tough enough to take the insults from a few of the posters.
I am She Who Must Be Obeyed (SWMBO) the other half of the No Propaganda Please signature. NPP is my husband. We are about the same age as you are, now country folk . We worked for a Christian group that helped boys who had been abused, often beaten and neglected, and many have been sexually abused. We are officially retired but still do the work but on a volunteer basis. We also train dogs to help with the rehab and have 4 dogs of our own. In about two weeks it will be 5 dogs, as we go to pick up our new Cane Corso puppy. We are just waiting for NPP to get over his lung infection so we can both go. We will probably get David (one of our boys we work with) to come along.

Reply
 
 
Jul 4, 2019 15:35:00   #
Carol Kelly
 
no propaganda please wrote:
Welcome to the discussions. You sound like someone who is tough enough to take the insults from a few of the posters.
I am She Who Must Be Obeyed (SWMBO) the other half of the No Propaganda Please signature. NPP is my husband. We are about the same age as you are, now country folk . We worked for a Christian group that helped boys who had been abused, often beaten and neglected, and many have been sexually abused. We are officially retired but still do the work but on a volunteer basis. We also train dogs to help with the rehab and have 4 dogs of our own. In about two weeks it will be 5 dogs, as we go to pick up our new Cane Corso puppy. We are just waiting for NPP to get over his lung infection so we can both go. We will probably get David (one of our boys we work with) to come along.
Welcome to the discussions. You sound like someon... (show quote)


I didn’t know NPP had a lung disease. My best wishes for a complete recovery. Y’all do good work and work that is much needed. Thank you,

Reply
Jul 4, 2019 15:40:28   #
no propaganda please Loc: moon orbiting the third rock from the sun
 
Carol Kelly wrote:
I didn’t know NPP had a lung disease. My best wishes for a complete recovery. Y’all do good work and work that is much needed. Thank you,


Thank you. That's why I have been posting for him. At first they thought it was part of the heart problems he has had, but apparently the heart is doing well on the new medication. The lung infection was a surprise. His breathing is better but he has little energy, and sleeps a lot. However, he is a tough old bird and will be up and about for many more years, God willing.

SWMBO

Reply
Jul 4, 2019 15:42:57   #
Carol Kelly
 
no propaganda please wrote:
Thank you. That's why I have been posting for him. At first they thought it was part of the heart problems he has had, but apparently the heart is doing well on the new medication. The lung infection was a surprise. His breathing is better but he has little energy, and sleeps a lot. However, he is a tough old bird and will be up and about for many more years, God willing.

SWMBO


Be the Good Lord Willing.

Reply
Jul 4, 2019 18:04:03   #
lpnmajor Loc: Arkansas
 
NANCYFLICK wrote:
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Civilian.
I started my career as the second female to work on the Allegheny River Locks & Dams. I was told the first one made life miserable for her team that I now was working with so I had hurdles to get over to earn their respect. My first day I was sent with another employee to pick up railroad ties. 10 I think it was. Anyway the guy I went with gave me immediate respect right after I picked up the other end of the 8 foot tie & put it in the dump truck like it was nothing! I admit I was very strong back in the day.
From that day forward over time I earned the others respect & they earned mine!
For 75 yrs this had been men only jobs so I had a lot to prove. I also was so fortunate to have a fellow employee to train me on all that I needed to learn & then some! These men became family & we had so much fun while we worked which made the day go fast. We worked hard too! Other than locking tow boats & recreational boats through the locks we did cement work such as large slab inclined walls, breaking up cement with Jack hammers, lots of painting & cleaning, maintenance on all equipment plus at the time there were construction workers doing rehab to the lock for 2 yrs so we had to work around all that. The rehab men preferred me to work the lock gates because I could open & close them without banging them so much, now this was done with 1 gate running by hand with a temporary cable winch & using the other hand to use the automated gate lever! To close the gates took finesse so they didn't bang shut & fall off into the water while putting them together in the mitered position. So I was pretty proud of myself!
Over the years I was able to work my way up to full time. From a WY5 temporary 8 month lock operator to a full time WY 9 lock operator leader to a WY10 being a Lock & Dam Equipment Mechanic. I knew a lot about the old original locks that by this time were over 100 yrs old! So I ended my career working at the old 4 upper closed locks trying to keep them in as workable condition as possible for the summer rec boat season that private boating people had fundraisers to pay for us to work them on weekends so they could travel back & forth between them.
It was the best job outside of my children I ever had. With lasting friendships made.
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps ... (show quote)


Welcome! You're one of those unsung heroes that keeps America running.

Reply
 
 
Jul 4, 2019 19:44:47   #
jeezmcrow Loc: Tacoma, WA
 
Appreciate your sevice!!

Reply
Jul 5, 2019 11:10:12   #
bggamers Loc: georgia
 
NANCYFLICK wrote:
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Civilian.
I started my career as the second female to work on the Allegheny River Locks & Dams. I was told the first one made life miserable for her team that I now was working with so I had hurdles to get over to earn their respect. My first day I was sent with another employee to pick up railroad ties. 10 I think it was. Anyway the guy I went with gave me immediate respect right after I picked up the other end of the 8 foot tie & put it in the dump truck like it was nothing! I admit I was very strong back in the day.
From that day forward over time I earned the others respect & they earned mine!
For 75 yrs this had been men only jobs so I had a lot to prove. I also was so fortunate to have a fellow employee to train me on all that I needed to learn & then some! These men became family & we had so much fun while we worked which made the day go fast. We worked hard too! Other than locking tow boats & recreational boats through the locks we did cement work such as large slab inclined walls, breaking up cement with Jack hammers, lots of painting & cleaning, maintenance on all equipment plus at the time there were construction workers doing rehab to the lock for 2 yrs so we had to work around all that. The rehab men preferred me to work the lock gates because I could open & close them without banging them so much, now this was done with 1 gate running by hand with a temporary cable winch & using the other hand to use the automated gate lever! To close the gates took finesse so they didn't bang shut & fall off into the water while putting them together in the mitered position. So I was pretty proud of myself!
Over the years I was able to work my way up to full time. From a WY5 temporary 8 month lock operator to a full time WY 9 lock operator leader to a WY10 being a Lock & Dam Equipment Mechanic. I knew a lot about the old original locks that by this time were over 100 yrs old! So I ended my career working at the old 4 upper closed locks trying to keep them in as workable condition as possible for the summer rec boat season that private boating people had fundraisers to pay for us to work them on weekends so they could travel back & forth between them.
It was the best job outside of my children I ever had. With lasting friendships made.
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps ... (show quote)


It's wonderful that you had a great career and family to love and cherish unbeatable combo welcome aboard to opp

Reply
Jul 5, 2019 11:13:09   #
bggamers Loc: georgia
 
no propaganda please wrote:
Welcome to the discussions. You sound like someone who is tough enough to take the insults from a few of the posters.
I am She Who Must Be Obeyed (SWMBO) the other half of the No Propaganda Please signature. NPP is my husband. We are about the same age as you are, now country folk . We worked for a Christian group that helped boys who had been abused, often beaten and neglected, and many have been sexually abused. We are officially retired but still do the work but on a volunteer basis. We also train dogs to help with the rehab and have 4 dogs of our own. In about two weeks it will be 5 dogs, as we go to pick up our new Cane Corso puppy. We are just waiting for NPP to get over his lung infection so we can both go. We will probably get David (one of our boys we work with) to come along.
Welcome to the discussions. You sound like someon... (show quote)


give our get well wishes hope the recovery is fast best to both of you

Reply
Jul 5, 2019 11:23:49   #
bggamers Loc: georgia
 
no propaganda please wrote:
Thank you. That's why I have been posting for him. At first they thought it was part of the heart problems he has had, but apparently the heart is doing well on the new medication. The lung infection was a surprise. His breathing is better but he has little energy, and sleeps a lot. However, he is a tough old bird and will be up and about for many more years, God willing.

SWMBO


What has always surprised me is as we get older our bodies don't respond as fast as when we were younger. An example I never thought I was sick and one day at work was trying to put in information in the computer and kept putting in gibberish after the third time I knew something was wrong and went to Immediate care and after an x-ray found I had lower lobe pneumonia. The problem I never ran a fever I never felt the need to cough until I started getting confused I didn't realize I was even sick. So everyone here who is older needs to pay attention to slight changes because sometimes your body doesn't know to say help me in a timely manner you need to pay attention to the little things that are not of the norm. Be vigalant and stay well

Reply
 
 
Jul 5, 2019 17:04:50   #
Fit2BTied Loc: Texas
 
NANCYFLICK wrote:
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Civilian.
I started my career as the second female to work on the Allegheny River Locks & Dams. I was told the first one made life miserable for her team that I now was working with so I had hurdles to get over to earn their respect. My first day I was sent with another employee to pick up railroad ties. 10 I think it was. Anyway the guy I went with gave me immediate respect right after I picked up the other end of the 8 foot tie & put it in the dump truck like it was nothing! I admit I was very strong back in the day.
From that day forward over time I earned the others respect & they earned mine!
For 75 yrs this had been men only jobs so I had a lot to prove. I also was so fortunate to have a fellow employee to train me on all that I needed to learn & then some! These men became family & we had so much fun while we worked which made the day go fast. We worked hard too! Other than locking tow boats & recreational boats through the locks we did cement work such as large slab inclined walls, breaking up cement with Jack hammers, lots of painting & cleaning, maintenance on all equipment plus at the time there were construction workers doing rehab to the lock for 2 yrs so we had to work around all that. The rehab men preferred me to work the lock gates because I could open & close them without banging them so much, now this was done with 1 gate running by hand with a temporary cable winch & using the other hand to use the automated gate lever! To close the gates took finesse so they didn't bang shut & fall off into the water while putting them together in the mitered position. So I was pretty proud of myself!
Over the years I was able to work my way up to full time. From a WY5 temporary 8 month lock operator to a full time WY 9 lock operator leader to a WY10 being a Lock & Dam Equipment Mechanic. I knew a lot about the old original locks that by this time were over 100 yrs old! So I ended my career working at the old 4 upper closed locks trying to keep them in as workable condition as possible for the summer rec boat season that private boating people had fundraisers to pay for us to work them on weekends so they could travel back & forth between them.
It was the best job outside of my children I ever had. With lasting friendships made.
Hi I am retired from the United States Army Corps ... (show quote)
Welcome NANCYFLICK. Thank you for your service. My wife and I served together in the Army (it was when the WAC was winding down), so we both know a little about what you went through as a woman in the military. You didn't even mention the sexual harassment, but I know you could have. All kinds here. Never be afraid to state your mind and based on your life story, I'm guessing that was rhetorical.

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