This article originally appeared on the International Masonry Institute's Facebook Page:

“It’s kind of cool that even after only a couple years of doing this, I can go through the city, and every few blocks point to a project that I’ve been on,” said Andrea Perea, PCC apprentice with Bricklayers & Allied Craftworkers Local #2 Washington Idaho Montana. “I did the caulking work on a building from 1875, cut it all out – it was infested with ladybugs. Our restoration crew was working on repairing ornamental masonry [on that project]. It was awesome, and I thought, ‘I must learn that,’” which is why she’s currently taking a class in JAHN restoration at the BAC/IMI International Training Center. Andrea has a degree in architecture and got into the trade when she had difficulty establishing a professional network in her area of work after moving from Albuquerque to Seattle. It was then she landed at signatory contractor Technical Waterproofing and started working in the field doing caulking, which she considers valuable experience for her goal to someday become a construction project manager.