For the second year in a row, Ozinga hosted the Mentoring a Girl in Construction Camp via the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) at our dispatch and plant locations in Mokena, IL. MAGIC camp is a nationwide, one-week day camp designed to offer high-school-age girls the opportunity to learn about future career endeavors in construction. Each day of the week they visit different area businesses that demonstrate what it would be like to have a career in their field.
This year, 12 girls joined us to learn about the opportunities for young ladies in our industry. Also present were several adult NAWIC members, including avid customers. One woman uses Ozinga for all her concrete needs while another purchases materials from us.
The group started off with a historical view of the company, learned about our products, and were introduced to our brand as a whole. President Marty Ozinga IV spoke to the ladies about his vision for future women in construction, specifically with Ozinga’s fifth generation that includes so many girls.
They began their day in dispatch and circled down to the Mokena yard for a plant tour. They learned about each of our entities as they were introduced throughout the day, viewing CNG powered ready mix trucks, materials/haulers, and tying in the logistics piece. In the afternoon, the girls received a thorough lesson in concrete 101 and participated in hands-on quality control activities such as witnessing breaking cylinders, learning the different additives and ingredients, and finding out how to take temperature, check for air, and measure slump.
Last year, a group of 14 young ladies had a similar experience, as they toured Ozinga’s Mokena dispatch and plant and learned about batching and quality control.