WEBVTT 00:00:06.000 --> 00:00:10.900 Well, I began, if I want to start there, as an electrician. 00:00:10.900 --> 00:00:14.740 As an electrician, then I did not want to be. 00:00:14.740 --> 00:00:20.140 When I came out of this service, as I wanted to go into the CIA and the FBI, and my father 00:00:20.140 --> 00:00:26.060 told me in his wisdom that I should not walk away from the opportunity to become an electrician. 00:00:26.060 --> 00:00:31.500 So he introduced me to local number three in the IBW, Harry Van Aasnell, and the entire 00:00:31.500 --> 00:00:33.500 board of local three. 00:00:33.500 --> 00:00:37.780 And I went up on a personal interview, which my father was astonished that I was speaking 00:00:37.780 --> 00:00:42.580 freely with these heads of state, as he called. 00:00:42.580 --> 00:00:45.100 He was quite nervous when I was there. 00:00:45.100 --> 00:00:48.780 And I was very comfortable speaking to people like this, because they just come out of college 00:00:48.780 --> 00:00:52.620 and I felt that I will have to say what I have to say. 00:00:52.620 --> 00:00:57.140 He was very much in awe of my review. 00:00:57.140 --> 00:00:58.140 We finished his support. 00:00:58.140 --> 00:00:59.140 You did a good job. 00:00:59.140 --> 00:01:00.140 You didn't stop talking. 00:01:00.140 --> 00:01:03.580 Well, they were asking me good questions, and I told them very simply, I would like to 00:01:03.580 --> 00:01:04.580 get involved. 00:01:04.580 --> 00:01:09.500 As a matter of fact, Mr. Al Mackie, who was the director of the assistant president of 00:01:09.500 --> 00:01:15.900 the union, said to me, I would like you to be very much involved in union activities. 00:01:15.900 --> 00:01:21.860 So you want to move you into the organizing group of local three, and maybe you could 00:01:21.860 --> 00:01:24.140 go out there and organize an electrical contract. 00:01:24.140 --> 00:01:27.500 So I said, this is something I do not want to do to myself. 00:01:27.500 --> 00:01:29.220 I want to get into the business. 00:01:29.220 --> 00:01:36.620 So I became an apprentice and through the apprentice program, I tried to be very, very 00:01:36.620 --> 00:01:45.380 aware of my ability to practice the best, best matter and the best efficiencies in doing 00:01:46.260 --> 00:01:47.420 electrical installations. 00:01:47.420 --> 00:01:52.980 I learned quickly how very good mechanics have taught me, and as a result, I was very pleased. 00:01:52.980 --> 00:02:01.340 I moved very quickly through the whole organization at a point where now I was leading the mechanics. 00:02:01.340 --> 00:02:11.020 Then the opportunity came where an M. Isenberg and brothers that I became known as the lead 00:02:11.020 --> 00:02:18.020 mechanic of the company moved quickly into Foreman, and when I was just graduating from 00:02:20.660 --> 00:02:27.180 school in local number three, and I was given my card as an age journeyman, they gave me 00:02:27.180 --> 00:02:34.180 the podcast to do a 96th Street Park Avenue, and the Foreman who had the job, performing, 00:02:34.180 --> 00:02:40.300 had some serious illness, and I took off his operation, and I was successful in doing 00:02:40.300 --> 00:02:41.300 what I had to do. 00:02:41.300 --> 00:02:47.300 From there, I moved right through the system, and Albert Isenberg always was a tyrant as 00:02:49.660 --> 00:02:50.660 a leader. 00:02:50.660 --> 00:02:56.940 He was very difficult to work for, but he found me to be the cutting edge of what he wanted 00:02:56.940 --> 00:02:57.940 as a foreman. 00:02:57.940 --> 00:03:02.380 I did Lupe Chevrolet, we installed all the work for Lupe Chevrolet, and not a job he 00:03:02.380 --> 00:03:06.740 said to me, I like to make you super-intended of Law Island. 00:03:06.740 --> 00:03:10.620 I was challenged several times because I was the youngest kid on the block, I was about 00:03:10.620 --> 00:03:17.300 30, maybe 30 years old, and I had been working there who were 45, 50, 60, and none of them 00:03:17.300 --> 00:03:19.060 accepted me easily. 00:03:19.060 --> 00:03:22.940 I had approved myself all the way, but that's the story of business. 00:03:22.940 --> 00:03:25.620 You must prove yourself before you're accepted. 00:03:25.620 --> 00:03:30.420 So I made very sure that everything I told them what to do, and how to do it, I was 00:03:30.420 --> 00:03:32.620 correct in what I did. 00:03:32.620 --> 00:03:37.620 When I moved through that, then became the super-intended for all of New York and Log Island. 00:03:37.620 --> 00:03:43.220 Then, as we grew in the company, I realized that Mr. Isenberg was going on a very aggressive 00:03:43.220 --> 00:03:51.420 path to sell his company, and I wasn't pleased about the rapid, I guess, buys he was making 00:03:51.420 --> 00:03:56.900 on various buildings, 22, Portland, 747, 3rd Avenue, and a bunch of others, and I said 00:03:56.900 --> 00:03:58.500 the prices are too low. 00:03:58.500 --> 00:04:01.660 Eventually, he's going to implode. 00:04:01.660 --> 00:04:02.980 So I decided to leave. 00:04:02.980 --> 00:04:08.860 I left that, and then I wanted to have a call, a watch trial electric with Irving Weinstein, 00:04:08.860 --> 00:04:10.340 and that lasted five years. 00:04:10.340 --> 00:04:15.440 We were absorbed by the Damien Corporation, and the Damien Corporation looked upon us as 00:04:15.440 --> 00:04:19.420 the installers of firelocks, because that was what they would do. 00:04:19.420 --> 00:04:25.180 They merged with firecraft, fire company, and us as the installers, it was a perfect fit. 00:04:25.180 --> 00:04:28.700 This is when the city of New York went bankrupt. 00:04:28.700 --> 00:04:36.540 So everything kind of slowed down around 1975, and I decided, best I get myself into 00:04:36.540 --> 00:04:38.020 a new position. 00:04:38.020 --> 00:04:44.580 So I left, and found a company called Unity Electric, so I came up with enough money 00:04:44.580 --> 00:04:49.740 by borrowing everything I could from my uncles and father-in-law, and I had a down payment, 00:04:49.740 --> 00:04:50.740 much of my surprise. 00:04:50.740 --> 00:04:58.060 When we started this business with six men, they were doing maintenance for banks, and 00:04:58.060 --> 00:05:04.900 at that time, Chaseman had banked just started a program of ATMs, and the ATMs were coming 00:05:04.900 --> 00:05:09.060 out so rapidly that their design was not correct. 00:05:09.060 --> 00:05:13.580 And the power that I have in terms of this business, I just enjoyed very much going over 00:05:13.580 --> 00:05:18.420 the drawings and redesigning it, so it's better than what it was on paper. 00:05:18.420 --> 00:05:20.460 I did that over and over and over again. 00:05:20.460 --> 00:05:25.980 We had probably a success rate of about 75% to 80% of all the ATMs that come out of New 00:05:25.980 --> 00:05:26.980 York. 00:05:26.980 --> 00:05:30.020 And we made a very decent margin on that. 00:05:30.020 --> 00:05:34.940 And going back, they had a security system that was not designed properly, and this is 00:05:34.940 --> 00:05:40.100 how the level of contracting can get involved with the client when he's close to what's 00:05:40.100 --> 00:05:41.100 happening. 00:05:41.100 --> 00:05:45.540 It sent to me, you know, there's a problem with this security system. 00:05:45.540 --> 00:05:50.100 A woman comes and she swipes her card and the door opens for the ATM. 00:05:50.100 --> 00:05:55.220 She goes in the ATM and takes all her, makes a business transaction. 00:05:55.220 --> 00:05:59.900 She then goes over to the door, swipes the card again, puts her bag on the floor, 00:05:59.900 --> 00:06:02.100 because back up the bed, the door is locked. 00:06:02.100 --> 00:06:04.380 Most of the timing is so critical. 00:06:04.380 --> 00:06:06.060 You have to give us a time delay. 00:06:06.060 --> 00:06:13.940 So I went to a friend of mine in the alarm business, and they said, Shelley, you have to 00:06:13.940 --> 00:06:14.940 help me out. 00:06:14.940 --> 00:06:17.820 We have to decide something here, and I need space to do it. 00:06:17.820 --> 00:06:21.860 So I put his arm on the desk, and he cleared all the junk off the desk, and he says, Peter, 00:06:21.860 --> 00:06:23.380 this is all yours. 00:06:23.380 --> 00:06:27.060 So I sat there for about three hours and I designed my own system. 00:06:27.060 --> 00:06:31.260 That system became the standard for all of the ATMs that was in Brooklyn and Queens at 00:06:31.260 --> 00:06:32.260 the time. 00:06:32.260 --> 00:06:38.420 And it was an incredible win for me, because we helped out security, we got this thing 00:06:38.420 --> 00:06:42.220 running, and the ATM program went on and on and on without any issues. 00:06:42.220 --> 00:06:46.260 It got to a point where anybody changing in the ATM would call us first and say, what 00:06:46.260 --> 00:06:49.740 is this all about, tell me you approved this. 00:06:49.740 --> 00:06:55.700 On the ATMs, we wanted to chase plaza, which is a huge chase building, and we began 00:06:55.700 --> 00:06:57.980 doing some data work in there. 00:06:57.980 --> 00:07:04.100 And we had some resistance from the contract that I was in the building, but we still 00:07:04.100 --> 00:07:10.540 haven't became that, because the quality of our work was so extremely up from the contract 00:07:10.540 --> 00:07:16.020 that was doing the work, the quality and design and labeling and so on. 00:07:16.020 --> 00:07:22.420 John Ciccatella, who was a senior vice president at that time, walked into the training floor, 00:07:22.420 --> 00:07:26.180 and he saw the work we did over the weekend, he says, who in the world did this? 00:07:26.180 --> 00:07:28.500 It can't be the company that said this building. 00:07:28.500 --> 00:07:31.660 He's a new guy, he's going to give him all the work. 00:07:31.660 --> 00:07:38.340 Just a simple thing of doing a job correctly, doing it with a certain amount of pride and 00:07:38.340 --> 00:07:42.940 dignity, we got all the work, and eventually the other contract had to leave, and we've 00:07:42.940 --> 00:07:50.620 been in the chase, I guess, now for 20, 23, 24 years, doing all the work that expanded 00:07:50.620 --> 00:07:53.460 from that. 00:07:53.460 --> 00:07:58.260 Chase had the training floor, there was a 17th floor, there was a training floor there, 00:07:58.260 --> 00:08:02.860 and they had a huge machine, it looked like a billboard that you would see in a baseball 00:08:02.860 --> 00:08:07.060 park, and it was all motorized. 00:08:07.060 --> 00:08:10.660 Monas were driving, the numbers, the models were driving, the sales, the models were driving 00:08:10.740 --> 00:08:18.140 the whole thing, so that when the market was up, the machine lifted in pitch and intensity 00:08:18.140 --> 00:08:22.100 and had a certain beat to it. 00:08:22.100 --> 00:08:27.700 When that happened, all the traders would focus on this and say, we got a good day coming. 00:08:27.700 --> 00:08:31.540 They would stay there and stay there so finally, they were very happy about what was going 00:08:31.540 --> 00:08:32.540 on. 00:08:32.540 --> 00:08:38.100 The one complaint that the engineers and design people said, it makes too much noise, that's 00:08:38.100 --> 00:08:40.620 to change it to an electronic board. 00:08:40.620 --> 00:08:46.940 We did, the traders wrote a letter of protest, they do not know it's going on on the trays 00:08:46.940 --> 00:08:52.340 because they did not hear the music, the beat, so you have to work with them, so we had 00:08:52.340 --> 00:08:57.820 to put background music in to simulate the machines, let them know that they're very busy, 00:08:57.820 --> 00:09:00.380 but this is about client relationships. 00:09:00.380 --> 00:09:06.020 We had another case where the floor where they had a trade going in and across the street 00:09:06.020 --> 00:09:08.740 was at Federal Reserve. 00:09:08.740 --> 00:09:16.220 And Wolfgang Schokoff was a man of charge at that at the time, smoked big cigar, and when 00:09:16.220 --> 00:09:22.340 the runner was on, he would wait till the last couple of minutes to get the bid in across 00:09:22.340 --> 00:09:28.540 the street by 3 o'clock, so as the runner was picking up all the receipts in the training 00:09:28.540 --> 00:09:33.780 floor, which is quite huge, not too long for them long, sometimes he would get caught 00:09:33.780 --> 00:09:39.380 up at people and not be able to get to the elevator at the time and miss the trade. 00:09:39.380 --> 00:09:45.700 So he said, I want you to put runner on lights on the training floor, throughout the whole 00:09:45.700 --> 00:09:50.300 aisle that the runner runs on a stall, any of those syncronic stuff. 00:09:50.300 --> 00:09:54.180 But it's kind of things that people say, well why would you bother with something like 00:09:54.180 --> 00:09:55.180 that? 00:09:55.180 --> 00:09:56.180 Isn't that an engineer's job? 00:09:56.180 --> 00:09:57.180 No, no. 00:09:57.180 --> 00:09:59.940 If you're tired out with the client and that's what I'm trying to tell everyone, the client 00:09:59.940 --> 00:10:02.700 there's no limit to what we can do to service them. 00:10:02.700 --> 00:10:09.700 So the detail of what all this happens keeps us in the limelight with JP Morgan Chase 00:10:09.700 --> 00:10:13.820 and they don't forget they had 3 emerges and we're still there doing most of their work 00:10:13.820 --> 00:10:16.660 and the quality of what we do. 00:10:16.660 --> 00:10:21.500 And all the way through this, my theory was, my philosophy was, I should say, that we 00:10:21.500 --> 00:10:26.860 should not just apply ourselves to electrical work per se. 00:10:26.860 --> 00:10:29.860 The data communication is very big. 00:10:29.860 --> 00:10:36.940 So the other part of that is the other divisions that we have, such as uni data, which is 00:10:36.940 --> 00:10:45.780 a service company, when we were moving from New York City to Metro Tech. 00:10:45.780 --> 00:10:50.340 I was sitting at a table and everyone was deciding about this move of how difficult it's 00:10:50.340 --> 00:10:56.900 going to be to move 1,500 people into this building from remote sites. 00:10:56.900 --> 00:11:00.500 So I raised my hand and they said, I would have no difficulty in doing that. 00:11:00.500 --> 00:11:01.500 Well, you're all electricians. 00:11:01.500 --> 00:11:04.900 I said, no, we have a company called uni data. 00:11:04.900 --> 00:11:12.020 And uni data will be able to take everything off the desk, the pictures, the various works 00:11:12.020 --> 00:11:13.020 of art. 00:11:13.020 --> 00:11:19.060 So I put them in a box, label the desk, the move is then take the desk and move it in its 00:11:19.060 --> 00:11:24.060 entirety to the new location at Metro Tech. 00:11:24.060 --> 00:11:28.020 We come in, open up the box, put everything just as it was because they took a photograph 00:11:28.020 --> 00:11:29.020 of it before. 00:11:29.020 --> 00:11:33.660 And we move almost 1,500 people into this building with flawless. 00:11:33.660 --> 00:11:35.420 These are stock traders. 00:11:35.420 --> 00:11:40.140 These are stock traders, back in the house business, everything you can imagine. 00:11:40.140 --> 00:11:45.220 And of the 600 people, I guess maybe 800 were doing that. 00:11:45.220 --> 00:11:47.740 Then we put in a security system. 00:11:48.740 --> 00:11:54.660 We put in a closed circuit TV, the grand opening, the roofing cutting, but this floor was 00:11:54.660 --> 00:11:55.660 open. 00:11:55.660 --> 00:12:02.260 I brought a box of store burgers and the model of champagne to the director because everybody 00:12:02.260 --> 00:12:03.900 was in a very party mood. 00:12:03.900 --> 00:12:08.300 So I brought it into his office and I said, I'd like to show you what we put in. 00:12:08.300 --> 00:12:14.980 And he cut the ribbon and looked at the TV and said, oh my God, you mean all these people 00:12:14.980 --> 00:12:15.980 work for me? 00:12:16.980 --> 00:12:17.980 He was astonished. 00:12:17.980 --> 00:12:19.980 Oh my God. 00:12:19.980 --> 00:12:20.980 Okay. 00:12:20.980 --> 00:12:24.580 So it was something that you give you great pride to understand because there's a little 00:12:24.580 --> 00:12:26.420 bit of humor and everything. 00:12:26.420 --> 00:12:35.420 But this business is a very difficult business because it's heavily competitive and sometimes 00:12:35.420 --> 00:12:39.900 the market goes up and down and people need work so they think it at a different level 00:12:39.900 --> 00:12:42.860 and you have to know how to push back and say I can't do that because there's no way 00:12:42.860 --> 00:12:45.180 I'm going to be able to make money on that job. 00:12:45.180 --> 00:12:50.260 So that's where judgement calls come in and that's where it makes the difference between 00:12:50.260 --> 00:12:54.260 a successful business and a successful business. 00:12:54.260 --> 00:12:59.340 Remember cash flow is the heartbeat of the business and if you're taking three or four jobs 00:12:59.340 --> 00:13:03.620 that are very tight, then a fourth job is disaster. 00:13:03.620 --> 00:13:09.900 You have a problem on your hand because it can really hurt you in many ways. 00:13:09.900 --> 00:13:16.020 But again, I personally interviewed everybody I felt was going to join this company and 00:13:16.020 --> 00:13:18.220 be a part of what we're doing. 00:13:18.220 --> 00:13:24.820 Everyone who was a senior vice president, putting yourself, I had personal contact with 00:13:24.820 --> 00:13:34.500 all my, all my foreman that worked for me, a handpicked and I know I assist in many 00:13:34.500 --> 00:13:40.020 ways if there's a child that needs some help, if there's someone that needs some surgery, 00:13:40.020 --> 00:13:44.820 if there's someone that needs medical assistance, we do what we can in the company to provide 00:13:44.820 --> 00:13:48.020 them with any support we can. 00:13:48.020 --> 00:13:55.020 That gives us a distinct advantage because people respond well when they care and when 00:13:55.020 --> 00:14:01.020 you care and that's the difference between us and a lot of other contractors. 00:14:01.020 --> 00:14:08.300 And I am pleased to tell you that we opened an office in London, in London everything 00:14:08.300 --> 00:14:09.300 changes. 00:14:09.300 --> 00:14:16.500 It's a metric system and you're dealing with the philosophy of how people in London work. 00:14:16.500 --> 00:14:22.300 So what I did, I went to London and I looked at the space, this was a magnificent, beautiful 00:14:22.300 --> 00:14:23.300 building. 00:14:23.300 --> 00:14:29.620 I went there and I sat there with General Contractor and they had a bullpen where everyone 00:14:29.620 --> 00:14:31.500 existed. 00:14:31.500 --> 00:14:35.300 Engineers, architects, there was no delay in anything being approved. 00:14:35.300 --> 00:14:37.900 I said this is going to be a very streamlined job. 00:14:37.900 --> 00:14:43.260 I walked over to the table with about 25 people sitting around it and the man who was the 00:14:43.260 --> 00:14:50.300 director of the meeting said to me, I don't have you on my agenda, I said well, I was sent 00:14:50.300 --> 00:14:56.740 here by Jessica Teller to look at drawings and I don't have any information, we already 00:14:56.740 --> 00:14:57.740 have prices. 00:14:58.460 --> 00:15:01.420 I said, I'm astonished that you have prices based on the drawing. 00:15:01.420 --> 00:15:02.420 Are they the same as ours? 00:15:02.420 --> 00:15:03.420 You showed me. 00:15:03.420 --> 00:15:08.620 But you're missing streets and avenues of classes, there's so much left out of these drawings. 00:15:08.620 --> 00:15:15.580 So they began talking to each other at the table and soon everyone was busy in a huff 00:15:15.580 --> 00:15:20.340 talking to each other trying to find out what am I driving at. 00:15:20.340 --> 00:15:21.660 They left the table. 00:15:21.660 --> 00:15:25.660 This gentleman who was the director said, I've been doing this for 20 years. 00:15:25.660 --> 00:15:29.980 I've never had my meeting broken up, it's just kind of trash. 00:15:29.980 --> 00:15:37.140 Sorry, but JB and B was the engineer and I said that look, it's important that us having 00:15:37.140 --> 00:15:38.140 this drawing. 00:15:38.140 --> 00:15:39.740 They realized that I was right. 00:15:39.740 --> 00:15:45.900 Next morning, when their office had the drawings, two days later we went into the engineer's 00:15:45.900 --> 00:15:51.580 office for data communications, we had their drawings, took them back to New York and two 00:15:51.580 --> 00:15:55.580 weeks later we were on water at the job on a bit. 00:15:55.580 --> 00:15:59.700 Okay, because they did things differently than we do, but we found out how they do it. 00:15:59.700 --> 00:16:04.580 In any case, now I figured out, well, I went back in three weeks later and I went back 00:16:04.580 --> 00:16:05.580 to London. 00:16:05.580 --> 00:16:09.700 I was trying to figure out how in the world am I going to do this now? 00:16:09.700 --> 00:16:13.460 At the time, the local three was on furloughs. 00:16:13.460 --> 00:16:16.980 So I know I had a cadre of furloughs and I can move over there. 00:16:16.980 --> 00:16:22.020 So I went there and I picked my form and general form and all the way through and I read 00:16:22.020 --> 00:16:27.540 to the house in Blackheath which is one train stop away from the job and I thought this 00:16:27.540 --> 00:16:28.540 sort of thing. 00:16:28.540 --> 00:16:32.220 I said, if the boys go out and have a good time the night before, all they have to do 00:16:32.220 --> 00:16:37.420 is follow a train and go one stop, drag themselves off and go to work. 00:16:37.420 --> 00:16:41.180 So we managed to understand their philosophy. 00:16:41.180 --> 00:16:46.340 So in a matter of fact, I was asked to save a lot of money in the job and it was over-designed. 00:16:46.340 --> 00:16:49.260 So I said, if you were designed as all these cable trains in the floor, you really don't 00:16:49.260 --> 00:16:50.260 need them. 00:16:50.260 --> 00:16:54.260 We just put the cable on the floor like we do in the yard and we saved them almost $300,000 00:16:54.260 --> 00:16:57.100 which was something they appreciated very much. 00:16:57.100 --> 00:17:01.580 So the engineers who were on the job were very upset with what I did. 00:17:01.580 --> 00:17:05.340 They said, you know, this is wrong, they want to save money, that's what we did. 00:17:05.340 --> 00:17:07.060 Let's all go after dinner tonight. 00:17:07.060 --> 00:17:10.340 That's one thing an English person will never do is walk away from the good dinner. 00:17:10.340 --> 00:17:15.660 So we took all after dinner and then we went to this satay restaurant and they had no 00:17:15.660 --> 00:17:16.660 idea for it. 00:17:16.660 --> 00:17:21.900 So I was on my own element and I ordered everything they should have and they were in heaven. 00:17:21.900 --> 00:17:24.620 Everything they ate was very, very pleasing to them. 00:17:24.620 --> 00:17:27.580 At the end they said, we'd like to have pork, that's not tonight, you've got to be drinking 00:17:27.580 --> 00:17:28.580 grappa. 00:17:28.580 --> 00:17:35.460 So they started banging down, drinking grappa and as the night wore on, I noticed they 00:17:35.460 --> 00:17:38.380 were slurring their words and all things for that nature. 00:17:38.380 --> 00:17:41.220 The next day they all came in wearing black armpits. 00:17:41.220 --> 00:17:43.660 It's just not what it's done. 00:17:43.660 --> 00:17:50.220 So I knew a bond that was created and that's what you have to do to break the dam of resentment 00:17:50.220 --> 00:17:54.900 and differences of opinion, find a way to get through and that's what they did and everybody 00:17:54.900 --> 00:17:55.900 is very happy about it. 00:17:55.900 --> 00:17:58.260 They still talk about it in this day. 00:17:58.260 --> 00:18:02.300 Job was probably one of the best jobs we've ever had because we made sure that the English 00:18:02.300 --> 00:18:06.540 people treated with dignity and we were treated with dignity because we were the largest job 00:18:06.540 --> 00:18:09.340 in London and we're doing it with Americans. 00:18:09.340 --> 00:18:13.820 We can understand how resentment had been at a very high level. 00:18:13.820 --> 00:18:20.860 So we come back to that and then London kept going and we're concentrating now on New 00:18:20.860 --> 00:18:23.780 Jersey with a lot of work going on there. 00:18:23.780 --> 00:18:29.900 We now have a help desk that runs out of uni data that takes care of all of the JPMorgan 00:18:29.900 --> 00:18:38.900 Chase work and we are now in UPS facility in Georgia and we're here in New Jersey. 00:18:38.900 --> 00:18:44.660 And all of this we were told that they want us to bid the Yankee Stadium of course. 00:18:44.660 --> 00:18:49.660 We've been terminal number four Kennedy Airport and Harry Olsen was the director of terminal 00:18:49.660 --> 00:18:50.660 number four. 00:18:50.660 --> 00:18:55.820 A lot of problems with that job but we got into it and resolved every one of his problems. 00:18:55.820 --> 00:19:00.140 So when the Yankee Stadium came up we'd bid the job of the Turner, got to work and we're 00:19:00.140 --> 00:19:03.860 very happy about it and then something happened with the contract that it was doing in the 00:19:03.860 --> 00:19:08.860 maintenance for the Yankees and they said to us, would you like to do the main thing 00:19:08.860 --> 00:19:15.060 and it's of the Yankees in the old field and then when the new field is finished you 00:19:15.060 --> 00:19:17.380 may be a candidate for the new field. 00:19:17.380 --> 00:19:21.940 We did such a good job in the old field that they automatically transfer us to the new 00:19:21.940 --> 00:19:22.940 field. 00:19:22.940 --> 00:19:27.740 And now we do all the work for the new Yankees and it's an honor for me to say that because 00:19:27.740 --> 00:19:34.740 I really consider it a very fine excellent client really nice people and the Yankees they're 00:19:34.740 --> 00:19:40.180 a good client and we have what kind of standard set up for them and then doing this you 00:19:40.180 --> 00:19:47.820 know you receive recognition from the community which is nice saying charge university, saying 00:19:47.820 --> 00:19:54.060 Francis University, boys and girls, towns of Italy, the Bishop Humanitarian Award, all 00:19:54.060 --> 00:19:59.180 these things come to you when you begin to help give it back. 00:19:59.180 --> 00:20:04.180 That's the way I always felt, I always felt as you begin to grow you have to find some 00:20:04.180 --> 00:20:09.020 way to give back to other people who are less fortunate and it was a president of Strathmore 00:20:09.020 --> 00:20:14.300 Vanderbilt Country Club and then the Tiro Senno, New York City, the old Thai and American 00:20:14.300 --> 00:20:21.420 club in the country and I'm on the board as an geriatric foundation but all these are 00:20:21.420 --> 00:20:26.300 extremely time consuming but it's a good thing because you have a chance to meet a lot 00:20:26.300 --> 00:20:33.660 of other people who are doing other very nice things and it's like elevating yourself 00:20:33.660 --> 00:20:40.820 into an area of five people who their position in life is to aid other privileged, aid people 00:20:40.820 --> 00:20:43.780 who are under the stress and so on. 00:20:43.780 --> 00:20:49.100 So that's the piece that I like and of course the best part of my story is I'm married 00:20:49.100 --> 00:20:57.540 now to Caroline Striano and we have three daughters, Rosa, Alisa and Christine and we have 00:20:57.540 --> 00:21:03.900 six grandchildren so I'm a proud grandfather and my wife is constantly involved with these 00:21:03.900 --> 00:21:10.500 children and I'm very happy about how the whole family is working together as a unit. 00:21:10.500 --> 00:21:29.380 I met a lot of nice people through the business and it was a lot of entertaining, quite enjoyable. 00:21:29.380 --> 00:21:34.540 We saw a lot of New York and I finally convinced them to buy a place in New York because we 00:21:34.540 --> 00:21:41.540 were always in Manhattan. 00:21:41.540 --> 00:21:49.340 You didn't tell me when I went into the Army and came back out, I thought I saw you walking 00:21:49.340 --> 00:21:53.940 by a bar that I was hanging out in and that's how he called me. 00:21:53.940 --> 00:21:54.940 I met him in college. 00:21:54.940 --> 00:22:01.260 A level eight, four, three, four, three was a number, a couple years ago, 1190 grand 00:22:01.260 --> 00:22:02.260 time. 00:22:02.260 --> 00:22:09.700 Anyway, we met in college and then he went into the Army and I didn't hear from him but 00:22:09.700 --> 00:22:17.260 then he thought he saw me, it was not me and we got together and here we are, 55 years 00:22:17.260 --> 00:22:18.260 later. 00:22:18.260 --> 00:22:19.260 That's great. 00:22:19.260 --> 00:22:26.260 Three beautiful daughters, six grandchildren, four boys and two girls. 00:22:26.260 --> 00:22:33.260 Very busy life, still busy, but he's still busy, he'll never retire, right? 00:22:33.260 --> 00:22:39.260 No, that's what gets him up in the morning. 00:22:39.260 --> 00:22:46.260 What would you say that, what was the driving force that made this business a success between 00:22:46.260 --> 00:22:47.260 the two of us? 00:22:47.260 --> 00:22:49.260 How did that work? 00:22:49.260 --> 00:22:56.260 I think you loved people and your work hard, wasn't 95, that's for sure. 00:22:56.260 --> 00:23:03.260 And you'll get things done. 00:23:03.260 --> 00:23:09.980 The primary reason, of course, as far as I'm concerned, that she, Caroline, was a catalyst 00:23:09.980 --> 00:23:14.940 in entertaining the wives of the people that we took out for birth. 00:23:14.940 --> 00:23:21.940 It isn't fun razors and so on, they fell in love with her and much of the time they 00:23:21.940 --> 00:23:24.940 would call them, you're coming to this event, right? 00:23:24.940 --> 00:23:25.940 Yes, I'm coming. 00:23:25.940 --> 00:23:26.940 Make sure you bring Caroline. 00:23:26.940 --> 00:23:27.940 Yes, of course I bring Caroline. 00:23:27.940 --> 00:23:34.940 So I was, you know, treated like an afterthought but I got used to it. 00:23:34.940 --> 00:23:38.940 Anyway, it's been fun.