by Julie M. Fidler
UACCB Freelance Writer
BATESVILLE – A Batesville area man, left jobless two years ago when White-Rodgers shut down, now works a "dream job" for Southside Water Authority.
Richard Williams of Southside worked in die casting for 18 years before the local plant closed its doors in 2009. The father of four said he didn't know what to do. "I was scared," he said. "I'm 47 now, and I was thinking I wasn't going to have a job."
Williams and his wife, Loyce, have four children, Jeremy, 21; Tyler, 20; and Bailey and Josh, both 17.
When the boss of Williams' wife at S&H Industrial Services heard about the family's situation, the company offered Williams a sponsorship. "Her boss told me, 'If you're going to go back to school, we want to sponsor you,'" said Williams. "They furnished me with a laptop and everything."
With S&H's help and assistance through the Trade Adjustment Act, which has funds available for displaced workers, Williams enrolled at the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville in the summer of 2009.
"I felt like the program I needed and was most interested in was industrial maintenance and electronics," Williams said. Classes he took included electricity, welding, AC/DC and motor controls, microprocessors and semi-conductors.
"The whole first year, my brain was tingling," Williams said. He managed to maintain a 3.4 grade point average and will be done with all of his classes this summer.
While attending UACCB, he heard about a job opening at the Southside Water Authority. The water department hired Williams part-time in early June as a field service operator at the water and waste water plants. That involves fixing leaks and installing connections and electronic meters, among other tasks.
Southside Water's manager, John Richardson, said he's glad to have Williams on board. "I'm pleased at the opportunity to get hold of him," said Richardson. "His associate's degree will help serve Southside with the work that involves pumps, motors and electronics. He'll be a real benefit.
"This is the way the system is suppose to work," Richardson said. "A company closed. UACCB and the Trade Adjustment Act stepped in. Now, Richard has the background and education to stay in his local community and provide a service to the public where he lives. He'll set a good example."
"It's not easy going back to school," Williams said. "UACCB, with their instructors and counselors, are incredible. When I told my instructor I wanted to work part-time, she said, 'Whatever we have to do.' The instructors really do care."
Although, for the time being, Williams' job description is field service operator, both he and his new boss picture him digging specifically into electrical work in the not-too-distant future.
During a recent tour through Southside's water treatment plant just south of the White River in Batesville, Richardson said he'd like to see Williams working there. At the plant, which opened in March 2003, programmable controls test water and add exactly the right amount of chemicals at different points in the water treatment process. Electric meters and electronic monitoring devices line the walls of several rooms within the concrete structure.
"I think he'll fit right in here," Richardson said.
