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The Carolina Qualifier for the SPEC MIX Bricklayer 500 was in Bowman, South Carolina in early November. First Place and “Top Craftsman Award” with an adjusted total of 465 brick laid, went to David Kelly of Kelly Masonry of South Carolina, who along with tender Nick Campbell, will head to the Las Vegas National Championship now set for June 2021. 2019 North Carolina National SkillsUSA Champion Grant Helms of NCMCA member firm Helms Masonry, along with his father Scott Helms tending, placed second with an adjusted total of 452. Pictured left to right, NCMCA’s Ryan Shaver, Steve Bell of SPEC MIX, and Grant and Scott Helms. Grant was the youngest and Scott was the oldest participant in the November competition. Creative Masonry of Greenville, Tennessee will be representing NCMCA at the 2021 Las Vegas SPEC MIX Bricklayer 500. Owner Fred Campbell will be returning to the contest as the Champion of the 2020 competition. Seven teams of masons and tenders recently competed in the Grey, Tennessee Regional Qualifier where mason Manuel Hernandez and mason tender Jose Perez of Creative Masonry were the winners. Hernandez also took the title of “Best Craftsman” for the Tennessee regional. Photograph by Jodie Helms. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

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Appalachian State University conducted its design competition for the 2020 NCMCA Sigmon Memorial Scholarship with results announced in early November. Eleven teams of two competed with an infill design of a hypothetical building façade featuring masonry as a graded assignment in Associate Professor D. Jason Miller’s Architectural Design Studio III and Integrated Design Studio. The projects were judged by NCMCA Chairman of the Board Kent Huntley and NCMCA Past President Doug Burton along with architect Phillip Jefferson, Program Director/Associate Professor at Wake Technical Community College. All aspects of the 2020 competition and judging were conducted virtually because of the virus. Finishing in “First Place” was the team of Sandra Anglesjo and Jesse Wilson with their project titled “Funnel Effect” (pictured.) Finishing in second to fourth place respectively were Sam Lee and Lindsay McNeil, followed by Alexis Cabra and Olivia Forish, and Serlina Francisco and Madison Hedrick. The first-place team will share their prize of a semester’s tuition. Runner-up teams will receive masonry tool prizes.

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Among NCMCA members attending the September Mason Contractors Association of America (MCAA) Mid-Year Meeting in French Lick, Indiana were, left to right, NCMCA President Danks Burton; NCMCA Chairman and MCAA Treasurer Kent Huntley and wife Robin; NCMCA Past President and MCAA Regional Vice President Gary Joyner; NCMCA Past President and MCAA NC Representative Calvin Brodie and wife Debra; Shelly Joyner; and NCMCA Workforce Development & Training Coordinator Ryan Shaver.   During the meeting, the MCAA Masonry Foundation Trustees elected to award NCMCA with another $20,000 grant for workforce development. The Foundation awarded NCMCA a $20,000 grant in 2019 for a total of $40,000. Photograph by Ruth Hill

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In October, Rush Masonry Management visited instructor Fred Mason’s masonry program at Southeastern Community College. Mr. Mason’s award-winning program was recently moved to the Whiteville college campus when Columbus College and Career Academy in Fair Bluff was closed. To assist with the expense of the relocation and re-equipping the class, Rush Masonry Management presented Mr. Mason with a $5,000.00 check during their visit. Pictured left to right, Rush Masonry Management Vice President Travis Plymell, instructor Fred Mason, Rush Masonry Management President Kendra Plymell Blackmon, and NCMCA’s Ryan Shaver. Photograph by Southeastern Community College.

CLICK HERE FOR ADDITIONAL PICTURES          CLICK HERE TO READ THE LOCAL NEWSPAPER ARTICLE 

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In September, Luke Keiderling (left) and Keith Young (middle) of Lang Masonry in Ohio visited with NCMCA’s Ryan Shaver for a few days to share ideas about workforce recruitment and masonry training. The three visited school programs and jobsites across North Carolina. Luke and Keith towed the Lang Masonry self-contained training trailer along for the trip, creating great envy within Shaver. In response, the NCMCA Board of Directors has approved acquiring and outfitting a similar rig for use in the Carolinas. The process is underway and the NCMCA trailer should be ready to show off before the end of the year. Photograph courtesy of Ryan Shaver

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The team of Grace Polo-Wood, Ben Stradling, Mylam Nestor, and Taylor Ligon have won the Annual NCMCA Sigmon Memorial Scholarship Design Competition at North Carolina State University. They will share a semester’s tuition as their prize. The competition required the team to design and model a hypothetical masonry office building. The competition is part of Professor J. Patrick Rand’s “Architectural Construction Systems” class at NC State University’s College of Design and is a graded class assignment. Ten teams participated in the “virtual” competition made necessary by current public health concerns. Projects were judged by NCMCA Past President Doug Burton and by architect and teacher Frank Harmon. Second place went to the team of Micah Holdsworth, Meg Maley, Selya Furukawa, and Ryan Fluharty. Third place was the team of Drew Dunphy, Brooklyn Scotto, Lauren Waterman, and Grace Riley and fourth place was the team of Barbara Espitia Toledo, Trent Baker, and Rushabh Patel.  The winning design is pictured.  The 2020 competition marks its twentieth year at NC State.   CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE