Mullis Wins at The FairRALEIGH - Contest Chairman Calvin Brodie and

Contest Head Judge Doug Burton have announced that eighteen-year-old Lane Mullis, an apprentice with McGee Brothers Company in Monroe since June 2012, is the Champion of the 61st Annual NC Department of Commerce State Fair Masonry Ap-prentice Skills Contest.

Finishing in ninth through tenth place respec-tively: Arron Webb, Salem Little, both of McGee Brothers Company, Janson Huntley of Huntley Brothers Company, Reid Hallman, Kohl Whitlow, Trevin Mull, Jacob Broadway, all four from McGee Brothers, Channing Huntley of Huntley Brothers Company, and Kaleb McGee of McGee Brothers

See Page Three

In this Issue:

Message from the President Page 2Sponsor’s Page Page 3NC State Sigmon Competition Page 4Metrolina Golf Results Page 4A TEAM Award for NC Page 4Glenn W. Sipe Passes Page 5Hood Back in the Game Page 5Board Meeting Report Page 6Member News Page 8Certification Update Page 9Dates to Note Page 9State Golf Results Page 10Second Annual Safety Awards Page 10Welcome New Members Page 10

Company. The top ten scores ranged from 166 to 148 out of a possible 180.

2014 NC SkillsUSA State Champion Blake Hodges of South Rowan High School finished “First” in the high school/pre-apprentice division, followed respectively by Cody Harrison of Mount Pleasant High School in Second Place and William Smith of East Randolph High School in Third Place.

Fifteen apprentices from three masonry contract-ing firms and fifteen masonry students from seven high schools participated in the October 20th event. 2014 is the first year the contest has been sponsored by the NC Department of Commerce after having

December 2014 Vol. 40 No. 4

The Newsletter of The North Carolina Masonry Contractors Association

Top Ten! Lane Mullis, an apprentice with McGee Brothers Company is the Champion of the 61st Annual NC Department of Commerce State Fair Masonry Apprentice Skills Contest. Top, Left to right, Contest Head Judge Doug Burton; Contest Chairman Calvin Brodie; Third Place Finisher Salem Little; Second Place Finisher Aaron Webb; Winner Lane Mullis, all three of McGee Brothers Company; Fourth Place Finisher Janson Huntley of Huntley Brothers Company; Fifth Place Finisher Reid Hallman; Seventh Place Finisher Trevin Munn, both of McGee Brothers Company; and NC Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary Will Collins. Bottom, left to right, Sixth Place Finisher Kohl Whitlow; Tenth Place Finisher Kaleb McGee; Eighth Place Finisher Jacob Broadway, all three of McGee Brothers; and Ninth Place Finisher Channing Huntley of Huntley Brothers Company.

Celebrating Forty Years 1974-2014

MasonrySystems.orgNCMCA.com

see “Fair” continued page two

Season’s Greetings

from your friends at TriSure

and the

NCMCA Insurance Program!

Page 2 NC Masonry News December 2014

Sign of a Professionalwww.ncmca.com

Ashlee K. Moore, CMP, PresidentKoontz Masonry, Lexington NC

Robert Gates, CME, President-ElectGates Construction Company, Mooresville, NC

Kent Huntley, CME, Secretary TreasurerHuntley Brothers Company, Monroe, NC

Gary Joyner, CME, ChairmanJoyner Masonry Works, Inc., Greenville, NC

Chris Bruner, CMP, Central Vice Pres.Gates Construction Company, Mooresville NC

Doug Burton, CME, Eastern Vice Pres.Whitman Masonry, Benson, NC

Don Caldwell, Western Vice Pres.C & R Masonry, Candler, NC

John Cramer AAI, Insurance ConsultantTriSure Corporation, Raleigh, NC

Pete Schantz RHU, Insurance ConsultantMountcastle Insurance, Winston-Salem, NC

Lynn Nash, Executive Vice PresidentHickory, NC

The Quarterly Newsletter of The North Carolina

Masonry Contractors Association

109 11th Avenue NWPost Office Box 3463

Hickory, NC 28603-3463Telephone (828) 324-1564

Fax (828) 324-2179Information@ncmca.com

Andy-the-Cat Productions

Photographs by Andy-the-Cat Productions unless otherwise noted

December 2014

NCMCA has had an active quarter. I would like to acknowledge the outstanding members and companies that give their time, money, and energy to make our association so successful.

In September, masonry and associate members gathered together in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to represent North Carolina at the Mason Contrac-tors Association of America (MCAA) Mid Year meeting. While in Wisconsin, Gary Joyner and Joyner Masonry Works were presented a “Tribute to Exemplary Achievements in Masonry” (TEAM) award for their project at the UNC –Chapel Hill football stadium. Congratulations Gary!

We also held a profitable annual state golf tour-nament in September, thanks to David McQueen and the numerous teams, cooks, volunteers for all of their diligent work.

October brought a notable SPEC MIX Bricklayer 500 thanks to host Tucker-Kirby Company. Calvin Brodie and Doug Burton teamed up for a super North Carolina Department of Commerce 61st Annual Masonry Apprentice Skills Contest at the state fair grounds.

In November, Adams, an Oldcastle company, at their facility in Charlotte, along with the Carolinas Concrete Masonry Association (CCMA) and McGee Brothers Company, conducted a masonry class and provided plant tours for UNC Charlotte Engineer-ing students.

As you can see, we have had a busy quarter at NCMCA and none of it would be possible without all of the masonry and associate members who consistently give their time, money, and energy to make NCMCA successful!

- Ashlee K. Moore, CMP President

A Word from the President

NCMCA at MCAA MCAA Chairman Mark Kemp (left) welcomed NCMCA members attending the MCAA September Mid-Year Meeting in Milwaukee. North Carolina was recognized for generous contributions by both individual firms and by NCMCA to the new “Masonry Foundation” 501 (c) 3 fund. Left to right, Kemp; Charles Newsome, Johnson Concrete; NCMCA President Ashlee Moore; Past State President Larry Kirby; Imanie Brodie, Carolina Stalite; NCMCA Chairman and MCAA Regional Vice President Gary Joyner; Brent Moore, Koontz Masonry; and Past State President Calvin Brodie.

Photograph by Tim O’Toole

“Fair” continued from page one

been an event of the NC Department of Labor for sixty years.

New Fair Champion Lane Mullis is the son of Harvey and Tanya Mullis of Monroe and the grandson of Mike and Dianne McGee. His foreman at McGee Brothers is Mark McGee. He is the nephew of Guin-ness Book of Records’ World Record Bricklayer Travis McGee. He has two sisters, ages fifteen and thirteen, and a six-year-old brother. In addition to laying brick, Lane enjoys deer hunting, softball, and “his truck.” He is “Head Cook” weekends at the family’s “Mac’s Restaurant” in Monroe, where he has worked part time for Mike McGee since he was fifteen.

His father, Harvey Mullis, says, “Lane told his mother right after the contest, he was dissatisfied with his project and didn’t think he could win.”

This is Lane’s third year competing in the fair contest. He also competed in the last two Annual NCMCA Apprentice Masonry Skills Contests, finishing “tenth” in May 2014.

NCMCA members provided volunteers, judges, materials, equipment, tools and more than $5,000 in cash for prizes and expenses.

Blake Hodges (left) of South Rowan High School finished “First” in the high school di-vision at the October State Fair Contest, fol-lowed respectively by Cody Harrison of Mount Pleasant High School in Second Place and William Smith of East Randolph High School in Third Place.

December 2014 NC Masonry News Page 3

To All of our NCMCA Friends & Clients: We appreciate your business and the trust and  

confidence you place in us.  From all of us at TriSure,  we wish you and your families a Blessed Christmas  and a  Healthy, Happy, and Prosperous New Year.  

  John C. Hudson

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Kirby

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Page 4 NC Masonry News December 2014

Sigmon Memorial Design Competition The team of Sarah Dunsford, Paola Gonzalez, and Elijah Swin-son has claimed the 2014 NC State Sigmon Memorial Scholarship Masonry Design Award and will share a semester’s in-state tuition as their prize. Second place went to the team of Parker Stewart, Ryan Cooper, Torey Kiss and Zach Souders, who each won a Crick four-foot level as their prize. The third and fourth place team also won quality masonry tools as keepsakes. NCMCA Past President Doug Burton and Raleigh architect and builder Vincent Petrarca of Tonic Design & Construction served as jurors for the October 16th competition, which required the team to design and model a hypothetical masonry office building. The competition is part of Professor Patrick Rand’s “Architectural Construction Systems” class (pictured left) at North Carolina State University’s College of Design. Eleven teams participated. The scholarship is named in memory of David, Randy, and Dwayne Sigmon. 2014 marks the fourteenth year for the NC State/NCMCA design competition.

Metrolina Golf Tournament A team from the NCMCA Central Piedmont Chapter won First Place/First Flight in the Metrolina Chapter’s Annual Golf Tournament. Pictured, left to right, the winning team of David Zenns, Gary Joyner, Freddy Koontz, and Lee Amick. Winning First Place/Second Flight was the Tucker-Kirby Company Team of Alex Kiser, Tim McManus, Nick Ferrucci, and Justin Bamonte. Other on-course competitions: “Long Drive,” Kristin Rorie, Hanson Brick; “Closest to the Pin,” Brian Jones, Hanson Brick and Alex Kiser of Kiser Masonry. Twelve teams competed on a beautiful October fall day at the Warrior Golf Club in China Grove. Chapter President and Golf Chairman Chris Bruner says, “Everyone had a great time and the rain stayed away!”

TEAM Award At the September Mason Contractors Association of America (MCAA) Mid-Year Meeting, the annual “Tribute to Exemplary Achievements in Masonry” (TEAM) awards were presented at a ban-quet held at Milwaukee’s Harley-Davidson Museum. Winning in the “Education: College/University” Divi-sion was the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Loudermilk Center for Excellence. On hand to re-ceive the award was the project’s masonry contractor, Gary Joyner, of Joyner Masonry Works. Completed in 2011, the project included expansion of club seating and private suites, a mezzanine, a student athlete academic support center, an Olympic sports training center, offices, visitor’s lockers, a lacrosse team facility and stadium maintenance facilities. Judges’ comment: “Outstanding arch entry with excellent craftsmanship.” Architect: Corley Redfoot Architects, Inc., Chapel Hill; General Contractor, T.A. Loving Company, Goldsboro. Projects entered for TEAM judging are submitted from all across the United States and Canada. Photo by Architectural & Fine Art Photography

Insert Photo by Joyner Masonry Works

December 2014 NC Masonry News Page 5

NCMCA’s first president, Glenn W. Sipe, passed away on September 25th. He was 94.

In January of 2012, Mr. Sipe was one of only four individuals selected for the first group entered into the newly created Mason Contractors Associa-tion of America (MCAA) “Masonry-Hall-of-Fame.”

There are now seven members of the hall of fame, two of whom are from North Carolina. Sam McGee of McGee Brothers Company was inducted in 2014.

The oldest of six children, Mr. Glenn was from a farm fam-ily in Catawba County,

where he lived his entire life. When he was sixteen in 1937, he worked in a Civilian Conservation Corps camp for two years. He started work for Herman-Sipe Construction Company, Conover, about August 1939, where they offered him a job helping as a laborer for $0.25 an hour. Later he was promoted to the concrete gang, mixing and placing concrete by hand. He asked to be trained as a brick mason, because they made as much as $0.70 per hour. The next summer, he started his masonry training and was a regular mason by the end of 1940. Mr. Sipe was in charge of a masonry crew by mid 1941.

He served in the U.S. Marine Corps in World War II.In 1954, after being the masonry superintendent

for Hickory Construction Company, he took on his first masonry-contracting job doing a unit-priced project in Asheville. He continued to do unit-price

masonry work with his own crew through the fifties and early sixties. He incorporated “Glenn W. Sipe & Sons” in 1966. Mr. Sipe retired from the business in 1987 at age 67, leaving it for his sons to manage, (Ken, Wayne, Randy, Steve.)

Glenn W. Sipe & Sons was one of the first com-panies in the south to use mechanical scaffolding and to do masonry work with lump-sum, turn-key masonry contracting. The firm continued to be one of the most innovative and progressive masonry contracting firms in the southeast through the late sixties, seventies and early eighties.

Regarding trade associations, Mr. Sipe said, “An educated competitor was a good friend, not an enemy.” He strongly believed helping each other was important to everyone’s success. He was instru-mental in forming the Western Carolina Masonry Contractors Association about 1968, which later became the Western Carolina Chapter of MCAA. The Western Carolina Chapter was among the first

Association’s First President Passes

Glenn W. Sipe

Founding Fathers In July of 2000, several early promoters of a masonry contractors association for Western North Carolina gathered to make an audio recording for the archives. Top, left to right, the late Howard Rowe who passed away in July; the late Carl Moser; Bob Merrill; the late Jerry Eckard; and Bobby Matthews. Bottom, left to right, NCMCA’s first president, Glenn W. Sipe, who passed away in September; and past state president Ivey Griffin, Jr. (The recording is available on request.)

non-union chapters of MCAA and Mr. Sipe worked hard to gain acceptance for the group from his union counter-parts. Mr. Sipe has served several terms as president of the Western Carolina Chapter.

He was a regular participant at MCAA conventions and tradeshows through the years and credits much of his firm’s innovation to ideas he brought home from those meetings.

Mr. Sipe and others from the Western Carolina Chapter traveled North Carolina in the early seven-ties to encourage other groups to meet and establish local chapters. In April 1974, the North Carolina Masonry Contractors Association was chartered and Glenn W. Sipe was elected as the new association’s first president.

Past NCMCA President Larry Kirby calls Mr. Sipe a mentor and says, “There are lots of us benefiting from the foresight this group of men in Western North Carolina had back in the sixties. They saw the need for a masonry contractors association and they made it happen.”

Later, Mr. Sipe was instrumental in forming the Carolina Masonry Council, a promotional group that included material providers, masonry contractors, and equipment suppliers active in North and South Carolina. He later served as president of the Carolina Masonry Council.

He was a Life Member of the NCMCA Western Carolina Chapter.

In 2011, the NCMCA Board of Directors honored Mr. Sipe by creating “The Glenn W. Sipe Presidential Service Award” for past presidents of NCMCA.

Surviving are Steven Sipe and wife, Beverly, of Conover, and Randy Sipe and wife, Annette, of Green-ville, NC; daughters-in-law, Patsy Sipe of Conover and Emily Sipe of Dayton, OH; sister, Sue Kirkley and husband, Bob, of Charlotte; grandchildren, Karen Eckard, Jeff Sipe, Hollie Baker, Julie Sipe, Chris-topher Sipe, Nathaniel Sipe, Michelle Sipe, Susan Brown, Cindy Whisenant and Peter Blum; 14 great-grandchildren; and 3 great-great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.

The family suggests memorials be made to Mt. Zion Lutheran Church, 4420 County Home Road, Conover, North Carolina 28613.

Photo by Andy BellHuntley Brothers’ Garrett Hood, pictured with wife Megan and son Tylan, heads back to Las Vegas in February to compete in the 2015 SPEC MIX Bricklayer 500 after winning the October Carolina Regional Qualifier at Tucker-Kirby Company in Char-lotte. Garrett laid 728 brick with no deductions to also claim the Charlotte Craftsmanship title. He won the national contest in 2008 and 2010.

SPEC MIX Charlotte Regional QualifierFirst/Craftsman: Garrett Hood (Ed Huntley) Huntley Bro 728 - 0Second: Travis McGee, (Cliff McGee) McGee Bro 704 - 1 Third: Matt Cash (Chet Huntley) Huntley Bro 528 - 0

Page 6 NC Masonry News December 2014

September Board ReportThe NCMCA Board of Directors met September 8,

2014 in Greensboro. The following is a summery of that meeting.

Treasurer Kent Huntley reported total assets as of August 31, 2014: $600,293.15 including liabilities of $57,404.62. With eight months of 2014 past and several projects completed, a loss of approximately $16, 500 is anticipated for 2014.

TriSure’s John Cramer provided a report on the Association liability and workers’ compensation program: “Masonry volume seems to be increasing slowly through the 1st and 2nd quarter of 2014, but still not anywhere to the levels they were 5 years ago. We have noted that the size and frequency of job-site and equipment theft claims has increased considerably in the last two months. Typically a sign that work is increasing and people are looking for new-used equipment.

“We are cautiously monitoring the increases in the Experience Modification Factors for all our construction clients, including masonry contractors, as well as our other construction related accounts. We think the average increases will be a minimum of 5 to 10%. This is a combination of the new cal-culation increasing the split point from $5,000 to $10,000 starting in April; the last five years of very low payrolls, and the last five years of increased claims activity, which is indicative of a weak economy and high unemployment. The “capacity”, i.e., the ability for an individual risk to sustain losses has declined, and mods will increase for most construction risks to reflect that diminished capacity.

“Currently, we have 23 participating members. The estimated premiums have decreased to 1.5 million. A significant part of the decrease in premiums over prior years is the increase in OCIPS and CCIPs. These programs are pulling substantial premium away from our program especially with a much higher number of larger jobs being all Wrap-up programs and not as many mainstream jobs working right now. Without those pulling from our group, we feel we would show upwards of 25 to 30%.

“The commercial insurance market still seems to be sending a bit of a mixed message. While small renewal increases are still being pushed by the carriers, there are signs that the market is becoming more stable and that the best in class accounts might even experience slight decreases. We expect this trend to continue through the end of the year.

“In 2014, we will focus our masonry contractors on proper documentation of subcontractors including written contracts with specific risk transfer wording, verifica-tion that insurance is in place correctly, and

that there is no one using uninsured subs.”Pete Schantz of Mountcastle Insurance provided a

report on the Association’s health and benefits pro-gram: “The Affordable Care Act continues to dictate the direction of medical insurance in 2014 while the landscape for 2015 is beginning to take shape. Many employers with group insurance coverage took the opportunity to early renew in December of 2013 to avoid, in most cases, inevitable, sizable increases when moving to an ACA compliant plan at their nor-mal renewal date in 2014. Other employers decided against the early renewal option as the increase at that time was too significant to justify a change. Either way, group increases will be dramatic for most during the initial transition from a non-compliant plan to an ACA compliant plan. For our entire book of business, including NCMCA clients, the average rate increase has been 23% over the last 12 months. The highest has been 52%, the lowest a 7% decrease.

“December 1st, however, will be telling as hun-dreds of groups in North Carolina will be renewing coverage for the year and will be forced to transition to a compliant plan. In addition:

• Federal Exchange Open Enrollment for Indi-vidual coverage begins November 15 (renewals, new enrollees, terminations)

• Non-exchange Open Enrollment for Individual coverage also begins November 15 (renewals, new enrollees, terminations)

• Medicare Advantage / Part D Open Enrollment will be in effect October 15 – December 7.

“This is all significant, since on top of being crammed between holidays, there could be sig-nificant movement between all of the above, i.e.; company terminates group plan, some employees qualify for subsidy on exchange, others don’t, 65+ employees that were covered on group plan have to enroll in Medicare, etc. or individuals that were on the exchange no longer qualify for subsidy so they have to find other coverage with same or different carrier.

“Word has it that the NC carriers participating on the exchange are shooting for a 10% increase for 2015. United Healthcare is also entering the exchange this year so presumably there will be at least three carrier options for most enrollees in NC.

“As I said at the Annual Meeting, planning is essential when determining options since many variables exist, but given the fact that penalties have been delayed for most groups depending on company size has at least given some breathing room in the process.

“We currently manage 11 NCMCA contractors and/or associates on the group side and several individuals. We are hopeful that many other mem-bers seek our assistance with exchange enrollments starting November 15.”

Pete advised that December renewals “are out” for firms that “early-renewed” last year. Some good, others not so much, as is most often the case. Also, the mandate for 100 full-time equivalents or more that was delayed in 2014 will not be delayed again. Over 100 employees and you will be penalized if you do not offer coverage starting with your next renewal

next year. 50 to 100 will be enforced begin-ning in 2016.

President Ashlee Moore expressed the Association’s appreciation for the Insur-ance Program’s service and contributions to NCMCA.

President-Elect Bob Gates was very complementary of everyone who helped make the May Gold Hill NCMCA Masonry Apprentice Skills Contest such a success, especially host firm Johnson Concrete Company. The 2015 NCMCA contest is set for May 16th, hosted by Custom Brick & Supply Company and the Raleigh Chapter.

Contest Chairman Calvin Brodie re-ported on the upcoming 2014 State Fair Masonry Apprentice Contest in October at the fair grounds in Raleigh. Last year, Ap-

prenticeship and Training moved from the Department of Labor to the Department of Commerce, so DOC is now in charge of the contest, now in it’s sixty-first year. A grant has made it possible for the standard fifty-dollar entry fee to be waived for 2014. Contest Head Judge Doug Burton expressed concern that the contest is not being supported with masonry contrac-

Doby Chapman, right, provides block-laying instructions to UNC-Charlotte engineering student Bristol Weekly in November as the Carolinas Concrete Masonry Association (CCMA) presented their annul “Blockfest” at the Adams/Oldcastle facility in Charlotte. Students were treated to lunch and a plant tour in addition to hands-on instruction by McGee Brothers Company (and Doby.) A Vietnam Army Veteran, 73-year-old Doby was guest–of-honor at an Adams, an Oldcastle company retire-ment dinner later in November. He started with the company in 1982 after working since high school as a mason and masonry contractor.

December 2014 NC Masonry News Page 7

tors entering employees, resulting in high school masonry students supplementing the working ap-prentices participating in the contest.

Certification Board of Governors Chairman Doug Burton reported the sixth series of certification classes began in March at McGee Brothers Com-pany in Greensboro with some 30-plus participants. Statistics:

497 individuals, 88 firms have participated123 Certified Masonry Professional (CMP)33 suspended CMP79 Certified Masonry Executive (CME)16 Suspended CME27 Company Certifications6 suspended firms Doug continued, saying the primary marketing

efforts for NCMCA certification are partnering with the Carolinas Concrete Masonry Association (CCMA) in their presentations to architects, engineers, and construction managers. CCMA President Byard Stevens said thirty-one such presentations have been made since July 2013 with NCMCA participat-ing in most.

Danks Burton, who serves on the MCAA Certifica-tion committee, reported on MCAA’s efforts to create a residential masonry certification with emphasis on chimney and fireplace construction. Also, a “storm shelter” credential is being developed.

Safety Committee Chairman John Cramer re-ported “OSHA is continuing to have a Silica e-phasis program. If anyone in the group is tested, please forward the results to me so that I can continue to compile the results, confidentially, and we can use this data to use as a base-line that will benefit the entire Association going forward. OSHA continues to receive pressure to increase the number of in-spections and Serious violations they are charging against employers. We encourage all our masons to call us immediately if they have an inspection with violations to discuss their rights and alternatives.

“This past year we had the first Annual Safety Award Presentation at the summer convention. Congratulations to our winners of Gates Construc-tion, Joyner Masonry, LPS Enterprises, and Masonry Unlimited of Cherryville. We plan to repeat this every year.”

There was discussion of the controversial silica standard proposals. Gary Joyner, who serves as an MCAA Regional Vice President, reported the issue is still an industry priority. No consensus among legislators. Cramer suggested the state standard can be expected to follow what ever federal standard is adopted.

Executive Vice President Lynn Nash provided a convention report. Upcoming conventions: Kingston Plantation, Myrtle Beach – Wednesday Apri15 – Sunday April 19, 2015. 2016 is open for discussion. 2016 dates presently an issue waiting to confirm NC SkillsUSA Conference dates in April 2016. There was agreement that the 2014 convention panel discus-

sion was an exceptionally good program and such a panel should be considered for future convention, perhaps utilizing talent within our own Association membership. Nash noted the exceptional success then-president Gary had in acquiring sponsors for the 2014 convention, raising a record $26,500 in sponsor money.

Central Office Report: 138 total members, un-changed since April meeting. (66 Associate, 2 “Life,” 2 “Courtesy,” and 67 Regular.) The Sigmon Scholar-ship fund holds $7,233.34, including half the 2013 golf tournament profit of $5,200. Chapter pledges “in-hand” for 2014 total $12,500. 14 member firms voluntarily pay double-dues as “Distinguished*” and “Leadership” members:

Brodie Contractors* Cherokee Masonry* Gates Construction* Joyner Masonry Works* Kirby Construction Services* Koontz Masonry* LPS Enterprises* Manning Masonry* McGee Brothers Company* Mountcastle Insurance Pinnacle Masonry* Rush Masonry Management* Triad Masonry of Lexington* TriSure Corporation Whitman Masonry* Nash noted the certification classes have pro-

duced about a $24,000 surplus thus far in 2014 and cautioned against anticipating a certification-generated surplus contributing to the general fund in the future. He predicts future class series will be provided at a loss to the Association and he expressed some surprise it hasn’t happened before now. The classes need to average about 25 participants to break even.

Regional Vice Presidents’ comments: Don Caldwell reported the Land of the Sky Chapter held a fundraiser building columns at Brevard High School. He thanked everyone for coming to Asheville for Bob Merrill’s recognition dinner in August.

Metrolina Chapter report: “The Metrolina Chapter continues to meet on the second Tuesday of the month at Longhorn Steakhouse in Pineville. Our golf tournament will be held at a new venue this year, The Warrior, on October 29th. The Mooresville Country Club and Spa is undergoing a massive renovation and we hope to return next year. We have been slow with programs but our attendance has remained about the same with 15-20 attendees. Bob Gates ran last month’s meeting and a round table discussion was held, which I understand was very informative. Thanks Bob.” - Chris Bruner, Chapter President

Western Carolina Chapter report: “The Western Carolina Chapter holds monthly meeting on the second Tuesday of each month. Our current treasury balance is $9,429.73. We are currently engaged with

our annual gun raffle to be held on October 14, 2014. The tickets are $5.00 each and can be purchased from any chapter member. The grand prize is a Remington Model 700 SPS 7mm Magnum with a black composite stock. Our meeting attendance averages 6 to 10 people. All are welcome.” – Wayne Starr, Chapter President

CCMA President Byard Stevens provided an update on the CMU association’s activities. Stevens has been assisting the national association with the CMU Check-off program. Score: presently 229 House co-sponsors, 22 in the Senate and three on hold in the House for a total of 232, the “magic number” to get the bill out of committee said to be 218. For now, still in committee. Some concern among interest groups that the check-off program will reduce tax revenue, not taking into consideration increased business activity that will increase tax revenue. This is a concern not raised for previously approved check-off programs. Stevens remains optimistic about the CMU Check-off’s approval. Stevens gave additional updates on CCMA promotional programs. CCMA estimates some 500 “decision makers” have heard the programs in Eastern Tennessee, Southern Virginia, and North and South Carolina. They count some 22 projects that have been influenced to go over to load-bearing masonry, which adds up to 1.75 million units, 5,250 bags of mortar, 2,875 tons of cement, and 1,900 plus bags of grout. Also lots of added hours for masons. The goal in 2015 is to influence 30 projects and add three million units along with the products and hours that go with them by doing 70 presentations. To get that done, CCMA is contracting regional engineers to do the programs, beginning with Christina Subasic in Raleigh. Also looking to expand college programs as they are presently doing at NC State, UNC-Charlotte, and Clemson. Noted there is always a lot of interest about masonry certification at the promotional presentations. CCMA 2015 Summer Meeting is set for July 12th to 15th at Grand Dunes in Myrtle Beach. 84 attended in 2014.

A contribution to the BIM-M industry effort was discussed including a description of “Building Infor-mation Modeling for Masonry” and its importance to the industry. NCMCA made a $5,000 contribution to the industry-wide effort when BIM-M Chairman David Biggs addressed the convention two years ago, and made Biggs a promise that additional donations would be considered. The program has a price tag in the range of eight million dollars. There was a consensus about the program’s importance to the industry’s future. The board approved a $5,000 contribution in 2014. Future contributions will be addressed on an annual basis.

Andy Bell provided an update on the trials and tribulations of starting a new masonry contractors association for the State of South Carolina. The two existing local associations in the up-state and in Columbia met in January and began the process.

Page 8 NC Masonry News December 2014

Member NewsIn August, the Land of the Sky Chapter built ma-

sonry columns for the Brevard High School Boosters Club at the school. Chapter members, volunteers and masonry students participated. The club made a contribution to the chapter for leading the project.

Past State President Red McAdams bought a new truck. The old one only had 500,000 miles on it, so he’d still be driving if it hadn’t been rear-ended and then “totaled” by the insurance adjuster. The new one is a red Chevy. Just like the old one.

Paul LaVene says his September heart surgery was successful and he is recovering satisfactorily.

Pete Cieslak, now retired from BIA-SE, continues his recovery from back surgery in the early fall.

Bucky Goforth, who was with Koontz Masonry for forty-four years passed away September 5th after an extended illness. Lester William Goforth was 63 and lived in Lexington, NC. The family suggests memorials be made to Hospice of Davidson County, 200 Hospice Way, Lexington, NC 27292.

NCMCA was well represented at the September Mason Contractors Association of America (MCAA) mid-year meeting in Milwaukee. In addition to President Ashlee and Chairman Gary Joyner, who serves as MCAA Region B Vice President, members attending were Calvin Brodie, Imani Brodie, Lynn Nash, Larry Kirby, Damian Lang, Charles New-some, Danks Burton, Nick Blohowiak, Ryan Coyne, Brian Carney and Brent Moore. When the MCAA’s new endowment, “The Masonry Foundation” was introduced at the MCAA membership meeting, Gary Joyner was able to announce $200,000 in pledges to the foundation from NCMCA and from NCMCA member firms, helping to get the program off to a great start even before the financial campaign has officially started. Also, Johnson Concrete Company announce they will contribute two-cents to the new foundation for each of their new patented “Pro-Block” that are purchased by MCAA members. The “Pro-Block “ is being franchised across the country.

Past State President Calvin Brodie’s daughter, Jas-mine, is in Paraguay for two years as an Agricultural Extension volunteer with the Peace Corps. She’ll be putting her recently acquired North Carolina A & T Agri-Business degree to work serving local com-munities in the South American country.

Doug Burton’s mother-in-law, Holly’s mother, passed away September 25th. Marilyn Moore Board-man was 86 years old and lived in Roanoke.

Holcim’s Ryan Dodd has a new baby boy. Wells Hunter arrived August 26th and is doing fine.

Gary Joyner’s mother-in law, Shelly’s mother, passed away September 27th. Margaret M. Anderson was 83 and lived in Vero Beach, Florida.

Thomas Butts’ widow, Mavis, died October 1st. Thomas, who passed away in 2009, and Mavis were active participants in NCMCA activities and were among the early supports of the NCMCA in its begin-

ning. Mavis Andrews Butts was 79 and had lived at their river home in Arapahoe.

Leland Eckard’s son Jake (Master Masonry) is the winner of the Western Carolina Chapter’s recent raffle, a Remington Model 700 SPS 7mm Magnum.

Greg Huntley escaped injury when he used his aircraft’s built-in parachute to make an emergency crash landing in Davidson County October 22. As he does most mornings, Greg was commuting from the McGee’s Union County office airfiled to McGee’s Greensboro office. The engine seized at about 5,000 feet in the dark. The Cirrus aircraft is designed with a large parachute to float the plane to the ground in the event of an emergency, although it’s not so simple as that. Lots of luck and skill involved for a good outcome, and in this case, a very happy ending.

Three NCMCA member firms have made the 2014 Engineering News-Record magazine list of the top-twenty masonry contractors in the country. McGee Brothers Company is #2; Pyramid Masonry, #8; and Brodie Contractors comes in at #11. The masonry contractor list is included in the October issue story “ENR Top 600 Specialty Contractors.”

Howard Rowe was one of the founders of the Western Carolina Chapter of MCAA, later, the NCMCA Western Carolina Chapter. He was a partner with Jerry Eckard in Eckard & Rowe Masonry, and later retired from Howard Rowe & Son Construction Com-pany. Howard passed away in July. He was 87 and lived in Newton. (Picture Page 5)

Ray Walls has taken a position with Custom Brick & Supply Company as a company representative.

Norma Jean Sigmon, wife of retired, long-time active Western Carolina Chapter member Melvin “Shorty” Sigmon passed away November 7th. She was eighty-years-old and lived in Hickory.

Retired masonry contractor Robert L. “Bob” Heath passed away on November 7th. Father of Larry and grandfather of Lee, he was instrumental in forming the Triad Masonry Association (Triad Chapter) and NCMCA. During the mid-forties and through the fifties, his firm, Heath & Son Masonry, was among the largest masonry contractors in North Carolina and the southeast with practically permanent crews stationed at Fort Bragg and Cherry Point Marine Air-base. Masonry contractor member Eddie Land says Mr. Heath was a mentor for him, as he was to many other successful masonry contractors throughout the years. The family suggests memorial contribu-tions be made to Bessemer United Methodist Church, 3015 E Bessemer Ave, Greensboro, NC 27405. Mr. Heath was 95 and lived in Greensboro.

Brandon Hartsell of Gates Construction Company is the new president of the Metrolina Chapter as Chris Bruner retires from the job after serving eleven years. Tracy Kiser will continue as Chapter Vice President, Carson Greif remains as Chapter Secretary, and Justin Bamonte takes over as Treasurer from Terry Ward, who’s had the job for as long as anyone can remember.

Website developed, lawyers retained, a board and officers appointed to begin their duties at the begin-ning of 2015, seeking a CPA to get the paperwork done for the IRS and the state, and attempting to develop a relationship with a bank, which Andy says has proven to be more difficult than anticipated. Andy will be serving as the SC state association’s first treasurer. SC-MCA anticipates a chapter system, much like we have with NCMCA.

Chairman Joyner, who also serves as an MCAA offi-cer, introduced the MCAA’s new 501(c) 3 endowment, The Masonry Foundation. The goal is five million dollars within five years. As with most endowments, principle will not be touched. Interest, dividends and other investment income from the principle will be used to fund grants, for which NCMCA may apply. MCAA leadership has made a serious commitment with their personal pledges. Calvin Brodie has committed $100,000 over the next five years. Joyner Masonry has committed $25,000 over the next five years. Joyner spoke about the respect the national masonry industry has for our North Carolina As-sociation and says our participation is expected. The board approved a $25,000 contribution to The Masonry Foundation made in $5,000 installments over the next five years.

President Ashlee reminded everyone of the As-sociation’s Eleanor Upton Award for outstanding associate members. The award, when a worthy recipient is identified and approved by the selection committee, is made at the annual convention ban-quet. There is no obligation to make the award an-nually. Nominations come from the local chapters and should be submitted well before the convention.

In open discussion, Chris Bruner expressed con-cerns that the certification specification included in bid documents is not being enforced, and gave a specific example of a project where certification was required, but where ultimately, an uncertified masonry contractor was allowed to bid and was awarded the project. The masonry contractor in question is an NCMCA member, with employees who hold personal certification, although a couple of the employees have suspended certification status because of lapsed continuing education. With this particular project, both the architect and the con-struction manager claimed to have been unaware the certification requirement was included in the documents. (“Boilerplate” cut and paste.) Much discussion about what happened and what can be done. Limited options.

Board of Directors Meeting January 7th

The NCMCA Board of Directors will meet 1:00 PM on Wednesday January 7, 2015 at the Courtyard by Marriott on West Wendover Avenue in Greensboro.

All NCMCA members are welcomed to attend although making motions and voting is reserved for board members.

December 2014 NC Masonry News Page 9

Dates to Note12/6/14 Annual Land of the Sky Chapter Christ-

mas Breakfast, Cracker Barrel - Arden/Airport12/18/14 Mod 8 “ Advance Bidding Workshop”

Cert Class, Courtyard, W. Wendover – Greensboro1/7/15 Board of Directors Meeting – Courtyard,

W. Wendover - Greensboro1/8/15 NC Masonry Instructors Association

planning meeting – details pending1/10/15 Western Carolina Chapter Annual

Winter Social, Catawba Springs Country Club - Hickory

1/16-1/18/15 Raleigh Chapter Murdell Golf Tournament - The Grand Strand

1/22/15 Mod 11 “Construction Leadership Boot Camp” Certification Class, McGee Brothers – Greensboro

2/1-2/6/15 World of Masonry/MCAA Convention – Las Vegas Convention Center

2/4/15 SPEC MIX Bricklayer 500, Las Vegas Convention Center

4/15-4/19/15 NCMCA Annual Convention, Kingston Plantation – Myrtle Beach

4/21-4/23/15 NC SkillsUSA Conference (ma-sonry contest,) Coliseum – Greensboro

5/16/15 NCMCA Annual Masonry Apprentice Skills Contest, Custom Brick & Supply – Raleigh

7/12-7/15/15 CCMA Summer Meeting, Grande Dunes –Myrtle Beach

Additional details and registration forms are always available on the “Calendar” page of NCMCA.com.

2015 Convention Taking Shape

April 15 - April 19, 2015

Adams, an Oldcastle company, has already stepped up to sponsor a great Friday morning education session at the April convention. Well-known con-servative columnist John Hood of the John Locke Foundation and architect Eddie Belk, known for his work on the American Tobacco Campus proj-ect in Durham are on the program for April 17th at Kingston Plantation in Myrtle Beach. Barry Herndon and The Party Nuts return for Saturday banquet entertainment. For information about how your company can be a convention sponsor, contact NCMCA: (828) 324-1564 information@ncmca.com

Upcoming Certification Classes

Here’s the plan for classes as we begin wrapping up the 2014-2015 series: December 18, 2014 Thursday - Module 8 “Advance Bidding Workshop” with Ross Gary and attorney Thomas Davis. 8:00 AM at the Courtyard by Marriott, 4400 West Wendover Avenue, Greensboro. NOTE THE LOCATION FOR MODULE 8. Module 8 is required for Certified Masonry Executive (CME) candidates and is an elective for Certified Masonry Professional (CMP) candidates.

We will jump ahead with Module 11 “Construction Leadership Boot Camp” with Bob Dusin on Thursday January 22, 2015. Module 11 is an elective for both CME and CMP.

Please be sure to double check class requirements to ensure you have all the classes you need as you consider whether or not to register for Module 11. (Module 11 is an excellent workshop for up and coming leadership within your company, whether enrolled in the certification program or not.)

As we did in the last series of classes, we will again substitute the MCAA’s “Masonry Quality Institute” program for NCMCA’s Module 9 and Module 10 classes. However, the two-day MCAA MQI is under-going extensive revision and will not be ready for presentation again until March of 2015.

Here are the reasons for substituting MQI for Modules 9 & 10. MQI is very much the same content as Modules 9 & 10, however, it is much more specific to the construction and masonry industry. Second, MQI is required to achieve certification in MCAA’s national masonry contractor certification program. Completing MQI as part of the NCMCA program ac-complishes two goals at once. For many, completing the NCMCA certification program and completing MQI meets MCAA prerequisite class requirements to sit for the MCAA certification exam.

To help offset the significant expense of present-ing MQI, the North Carolina MQI presentation will be incorporated into Masonry University 2015, our annual opportunity for previously certified individu-als to obtain required continuing education credits.

Because MQI has been completely revised since it’s last presentation, anyone can use MU15 for continuing education credit, including those who have previously taken MQI.

The revised MQI will probably be making its début in North Carolina and should include participants from surrounding states.

If you are working to achieve NCMCA certification, please be careful not to miss the classes you need. There may be a significant amount of time before the next series of classes is presented. The schedule for a future series is very much driven by demand.

Watch the events/calendar page of NCMCA.com for continuous updates of class and event schedules and details.

Raleigh/Murdell 2014 The Raleigh Chapter’s Annual three-day Grand

Strand Golf Tournament and Bus Tour is Friday January 16 to Sunday January 18, 2015. Event Chair-man Doug Burton says, “We raised $6,512 last year, a record which brings us to over $52,000 since we started Murdell sixteen years ago, all money going towards promoting masonry. So even if you don’t play golf and you don’t enjoy a cold weather outdoor January event, you can still be a sponsor knowing that it is going for a great cause, although maximum benefit is attending the weekend.” Details are on the NCMCA.com “event” page or contact Chairman Doug at doug@whitmanmasonry.com

Certification Class Ramon Sanchez (left) and Javier Gutierrez of Joyner Masonry Works are participants in the current series of NCMCA certification classes, pictured in Ross Gary’s October blueprint reading class.

N

Page 10 NC Masonry News December 2014

See more pictures from NCMCA events and

activities linked at the NCMCA.com News page

This Issue Sponsored by

State Golf Tournament Results Tournament Chairman David McQueen has announced the ESSROC/BRIXMENT team defended their title in the September Annual NCMCA State Golf Tournament. Left to right, ESSROC team members Steve Walkman, Randy Clayton, Chris Evans and Mike Rochelle. The ESSROC team finished first in 2013, second in the 2012 tournament and first in the 2011 tournament. Finishing second for 2014 was the Holcim Team of David Zenns, Freddy Koontz, Lee Amick, and Nick Ferrucci. The Fay Block Team of Bart Hardison, Kent Cloninger, Bo Black, and Eddie Land finished in Third Place. The longest-drive prize was claimed by Lee Amick, and Gene Page won the par-three “Beat-the-Pro” contest. “Closest-to-the-Pin” honors went to John Sanderson. Some one hundred golfers competed on a cool and cloudy September afternoon at the Mill Creek Golf and Country Club in Mebane, raising money for NCMCA scholarships and other masonry promotion projects. Everyone enjoyed a barbecue dinner prepared by the Argos team of Danny Batten, Danny Alford, Sean Varner and Donnie Howard. Plan to participate in the 2015 tournament Thursday September 24th. (Always the fourth Thursday in September.)

2014 Golf Thank You!Tournament Dinner:

Argos

Gold Sponsors:Brixment/Essroc

Brodie ContractorsCEMEX

Custom Brick & Supply CompanyGates Construction Company

Holcim (US) Inc.Johnson Concrete CompanyKirby Construction ServicesLynn Ladder & Scaffolding

New South Construction SupplyTriSure

Bronze Sponsors:Roanoke Cement

Tucker Kirby Company

Tee Sponsors: Associated Scaffolding Co.

Calstar ProductsChandler ConcreteFay Block Materials

Giant CementHuntley Brothers Company

Joyner Masonry WorksKoontz Masonry

Palmetto Brick CompanyPine Hall Brick

Pinnacle MasonrySigmon Memorial

ScholarshipTriangle Brick

Tucker-Kirby CompanyWhite Cap

Construction SupplyWhitman Masonry

Wirebond

Volunteers:David McQueen, Chairman

Angie PuckettTrevor Thomas

David BunnHerb JeffreysGuy Harrigan

Donnie HowardDanny BattenDanny AlfordSean Varner

Katie DeJarnetteChris Mitchell

Dwayne BryantWayne Coleman

Justin Helms.

Second Annual Safety Awards

2015 will be the second year for the annual NCMCA Safety Awards. The awards will have two categories. Masonry contractors with less than 100,000 annual man hours in 2013, and masonry contractors with over 100,000 man hours.

The purpose of the award is to recognize masonry contractors who exemplify superior safety and loss prevention practices and have the lowest incident of recorded injuries and loss time accidents. This award will help promote the awareness of Safety in the NCMCA as well as provide the winning contrac-tors with recognition by not only the NCMCA, but a tool to help promote their own safety culture within their organization as well as to General Contractors, Owners and Architects, etc.

Application will be available to all masonry con-tractor members of the NCMCA in January.

Applicants must be a member of the NCMCA in order to be eligible. Completed applications will be reviewed and scored by John Cramer and Tom Hayes of TriSure, who will underwrite the cost of this annual award.

Deadline for entries is March 15, 2015. The winners will be announced and presented at

the annual NCMCA convention in April at Kingston Plantation.

Welcome New MembersR.E. Harris Mason Contractor, Inc.

Rodney Harris & Jack Phillips (R2)Greenville, NC

Recruited by Gary Joyner

PPE Group, LLCJay Haselden (A1)

Raleigh, NCRecruited by the Raleigh Chapter

MakitaScott Huff (A1)Waxhaw, NC

Recruited by the Chris Bruner