"Find What Clicks" - Jarrod Gayheart & Zackary Thurman

In this episode of The Apprentice Perspective, it’s Ambassador on Ambassador. Jarrod Gayheat, a Service Tech with Birkey’s, talks with Zack Thurman, A Precision Farming Specialist, with Birkey’s. Zack is a 2025 alumni of the Apprentice Ambassador program while Jarrod is a current Apprentice Ambassador. After graduating high school Jarrod worked for a couple different companies before eventually experiencing burnout. He looked up Birkey’s after seeing one of their vehicles that he describes as “billboards on wheels.” After meeting with a recruiter and getting a tour, he knew Birkey’s apprenticeship was what he wanted to do and has been happy with his choice. Zack, who was recently promoted, didn’t come from a farming background, but after speaking with his high school counselor Birkey’s was the obvious choice. Jarrod and Zack discuss finding what clicked, making it on their own, balancing schoolwork and their apprenticeships, and how Birkey’s has supported them through the process.

To learn more about apprenticeships, go to ApprenticeshipIL.com and follow Apprenticeship Illinois on LinkedIn. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

The Apprentice Ambassador program selects an annual cohort of star current or former apprentices to represent a wide variety of industries throughout Illinois. During their year in the cohort, Apprentice Ambassadors serve as guest speakers at business events to showcase the impact apprenticeship has had on them, their families, and their companies. The Apprentice Perspective brings their stories to you, our listeners.

SPEAKER_01 0:22

I'm Jared Gayhart, and I am a service tech with Berkey's.

SPEAKER_02 0:26

I'm Zach Thurman, and I'm a precision farming specialist with Berkeys.

SPEAKER_01 0:30

And I'm this year's current apprenticeship ambassador.

SPEAKER_02 0:32

Yep, I was part of last year's.

SPEAKER_01 0:34

I met Zach two years ago when he was on his sophomore year of the apprenticeship program through Parkland College.

SPEAKER_02 0:41

Yeah, I met uh Jared there. There was a convention where we had some high schools coming in and learning more about the program. And I did a little bit of speaking for Berkeys there and spoke to some of the high schoolers and tried persuading them there.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

It's been pretty good so far for me.

SPEAKER_02 0:57

I've enjoyed it. When you first started, what was some of the worries you had? Like maybe yours, maybe your family's like what what was on your mind?

SPEAKER_01 1:05

For me, it was definitely the uh not gonna be working full time for the next two years while going through school because I currently had had you know car payment and insurance to deal with. Well, that was really kind of my only worry about it. Now that I'm through the program, it's not really much of a worry anymore. I've enjoyed it now.

SPEAKER_02 1:20

Kind of like the same worry with me. My family kind of moved out when I was really young, so I was living on my own and I was more worried about getting forth and back to work, and I didn't have Wi-Fi, so I was kind of worried about the college side of our apprenticeship where I had to do schoolwork and stuff like that. But Berkeys actually came in and took care of me. They let me take a Wi-Fi booster home and use that, and they would let me do schoolwork at there at the store if I needed, and they really made it to where I could get through school. Also, they would let me use their truck and stuff on days like if I was struggling, if I needed to take my toolbox to the store, they'd let me use a Berkeys truck. They really shown their care for me and uh wanted me to succeed, and that's why I love Berkeys and they really took good care of me.

SPEAKER_01 2:02

They definitely do. They they watch out for their own, especially the ones that they're putting through the school. They they want us to succeed and you know be good technicians with everything. It's a two-year program. They want people that are working on their equipment and that are certified in their equipment to have associates' degrees over a certificate. It's just how it's how CACE wants it, wants the their C and H programs to be set up, is uh they'd rather have degrees than to be in a certificate program. It's a C and H program, Case New Holland. It is classes that have been picked by case that they want us to take that are case-centered. So when you get done with the program, you are close to being level one certified.

SPEAKER_02 2:42

A funny name they also have is called the Top Tech program. Making top techs out of the program, I like to say. Being a little confident there, but uh it's a dealer-sponsored program. Say they have some kids that they know are wanting to become techs around their location, or they're already there working, you know, maybe doing parts or cleaning. It's so they can send those kids there to that program and get them ready to be a full-time tech. You also major in agricultural slash construction industrial technology. You'll go to school, and then that first winter break is an internship, technically. So it's like a month off from school. You're working full-time. So that was nice for me being, you know, young, living on my own. I really needed the money. Uh, Berkeys was very fortunate enough to anytime I was in school, I could work. If there wasn't anything to do, I'd keep myself busy. You know, I'd broom, I'd clean windows, walls. You come back and they have advanced classes, so they're more advanced fuels, powertrains, electrical. You do three quarters, and then that fourth quarter of that your sophomore year is a full internship until you graduate, and then they hire you on full time. It's a really unique program, and I think there's only two case programs in the whole United States. I'm very fortunate enough. I only grew up about 20 minutes from it in the small town of Fisher.

SPEAKER_01 3:58

So it fills up fast too. It does. I think they only take what 20 people a year.

SPEAKER_02 4:03

Yeah, I I did hear in talks, they're trying to, you know, extend that and uh oh, makes the classes bigger now. Yep. Because it, I mean, it fills up right away. I couldn't imagine just jumping in and working on the equipment we work on, you know, that paid internship we do where you actually get hands-on experience. That was uh a lot for me because they had me with Experienced Tech and he showed me the ropes and taught me a lot of good tricks. And till this day I use his tricks. I'd say that paid internship, you know, being hands-on experience working there, that was probably the most learning I've ever done. I loved college and it helped you with the basics, but I think for sure that internship was where I learned 90% of my knowledge of our equipment and tricks and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_01 4:44

And I would say necessarily you don't have to be right out of high school to do it. I I have an interesting situation where I got out of high school in 2019, worked for one or two different companies since since I got out of high school. And then I finally got to the point where I just kind of got burnt out on it and just was not happy with what I was doing, and ended up just I mean, you can't miss Berkey's vehicles, they they're billboards on wheels. Yeah. So I just looked it up and just seen what it was, and just ended up getting a hold of the current the recruiter that was current at the time, and you know, got tours of the the store that I was gonna work at and then tours of Parkland and just decided that's what I wanted to do and went in at twenty-four and got done two years later. Now it's been way happier doing this than what I was doing before.

SPEAKER_02 5:28

I was gonna ask you, like, how is it since you've been full time, you know, out of your apprenticeship there? How has it been? Like, has it been pretty smooth, would you say? Is it anything different than what you thought? Uh are you happy with your choice? Like, just tell me how it's going since you started full time.

SPEAKER_01 5:42

It's I've actually really enjoyed it. It's been pretty good. I mean, it's it's slow right now just because of how the markets are. No one's really buying anything new.

SPEAKER_02 5:49

So yeah, summertimes usually are a slower time, but yeah.

SPEAKER_01 5:52

But it it's I've enjoyed it a lot. It's I've been pretty happy with my choice. You just gotta keep your mind open to being able to learn any learn new things because if you don't think you get done with the apprenticeship and you won't learn anything new, you are lying to yourself.

SPEAKER_02 6:05

Oh, we're in that industry, you're gonna learn every single day. I mean, that's the thing about it. It could help out anybody from young kids who don't really know what they're doing to you know, people that are kind of a little older, they really haven't found something that clicks with them. They can do that internship and see if it really clicks. You don't have to stay the whole program, you know, if they find out they don't want to do it. That's kind of good. That's why I preferred doing the apprenticeship, because I wasn't too sure if it was something I wanted to do. Like I always liked wrenching on stuff, but I don't come from a farm or anything, so that's why I really like Berkeys. I've I've always done pretty good in school, but I was high honors both years in college. So obviously, I'm not the brightest guy, so that actually meant a lot to me. I was fortunate enough. I'm in a whole new role. They gave me a promotion pretty quick, and I have to give it to that apprenticeship program. If you work hard, Jared, and you keep your nose to the grindstone there at Berkey's, they will put you in positions you want and they will take care of you. Jared, I wanted to ask you, is there any problem you encountered like going through your apprenticeship? Was there anything you encountered? And if you did, how'd you get through that?

SPEAKER_01 7:08

For me, there was not a lot of problems. Everything was easygo and smooth sailing for me. About the most I had was when I had troubles with a few of the English classes. You know, we had to write a few papers of that. I was able to ask ask my sister for help and she was able to help me. How about you, Zach?

SPEAKER_02 7:22

I'd say I was very fortunate. I didn't really have many problems, but I do remember when I first started electrical, because I I worked on a lot of older stuff, like I've had 80s Corvettes and Camaros and stuff, so I didn't deal with electrical too much, more mechanical. So I kind of struggled with electrical there at the beginning. One of the mentor teachers there of mine, his name was Ryan Mitztoffer. You had him. He taught electrical that first year, and I kind of asked him, it was only a weekend probably, but I I just wanted to get a little more, you know, hands-on time with it. And I asked him if he would uh stay after class one day and we could work on electrical and he can kind of help me one-on-one. And he did that for me, and he had no problem doing it. And I'd say that one day of going through just like the basics, I was pretty much straightforward from there. Like the next day we went to class, I knew exactly what I was doing, and it only took that one extra session to really get me going. You mentioned before, um, you were kind of worried about working part-time while going through this apprenticeship. I just wanted you to elaborate on that a little bit. Could you do that?

SPEAKER_01 8:26

Luckily, my dad owns his own business, so I was able to just kind of help him out. So that's what kind of helped fill the gaps on when I needed to make my car payment and insurance.

SPEAKER_02 8:35

I was a little worried actually during that too. My uh my parents have moved to Texas when I was 17, so I was on my own. That was one thing I mentioned to the recruiter. He actually came to my school one day because I was a little worried. I'm like, hey, I kind of live on my own. I'm struggling a little bit. I I can I don't know if I could do full-time college. He was like, You you do this program, I'll get you set up with Gibson City as close. Any days you want to work, we will let you work. Any days after school you want to work, we will let you work. So anytime I wasn't in school, I was out working. They really cared about me and wanted me to succeed. So I was very fortunate for that.

SPEAKER_01 9:12

For our last question, what is something you would want listeners to walk away with? And what would you encourage them to do?

SPEAKER_02 9:18

I'd want listeners to walk away with hope that there's companies out there that'll take care of you because there is. I was gonna ask you the same thing, Jared. What would you want listeners to walk away with? And what would you encourage them to do?

SPEAKER_01 9:41

Find something you will be happy with that you would like to do for a career. It's not always about the money. The money is just a nice part about any job you work, but do something you're happy with that you could wake up every morning and be like, yeah, I can I'm happy to go to work, keep doing this. Do something that your heart is in.

SPEAKER_02 9:57

Who doesn't want to go to work and not be smiling the whole day? Because I smile the whole day, so I like what I'm doing.

SPEAKER_00 10:03

Join us next time to hear Christina Harms from Mid Illinois Companies and Stephen Lafaber with the North Central Illinois Finishing Trades Institute talk about success as a woman in the trades. Thank you for joining us for this episode, and we look forward to seeing you next time on the Apprentice Perspective.