A second chance as an HVAC tech

It’s not every day you get a genuine second chance.

I personally feel that I earned one, if I’m being honest, but I was still surprised to get it.

Back in the day I did a lot of drugs and drinking, and some jail time for offenses related to those activities. I never hurt anyone, other than myself, but my record showed me to be a drunk and a druggie… until I turned things around. I got clean, I stayed clean, I went back to school, I did everything right. After all that, the only reason I was able to get a real job is because the HVAC contractor recognized me from the AA meetings. He had a soft spot for guys like me, and gave me a shot working a tech on one of his three different HVAC work crews. He did big end industrial jobs mostly, which I had never done before, but he knew I had the core skills of HVAC work and that I could pick up the rest. He believed in me, told me straight up that I had beat my demons, and after that learning this side of HVAC work would be easy. He was wrong about that, industrial HVAC systems are monstrous and complex, but it was still easier than quitting drinking. After six months, I had proven myself, and he put me in charge of a fourth, smaller HVAC crew. When times were dark, HVAC skills were my saving grace, but I never could have survived without this HVAC contractor helping me out.

 

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