Graduate Connections – Meet Lynn Wayman

Lynn, 49, from Jacksonville, Florida, completed the seven-month Electrical Applications program at Tulsa Welding School in Jacksonville in June 2024. 

Thanks for your time, Lynn. What did you do before enrolling at Tulsa Welding School?

The first 20 years after I graduated high school, I was in the Navy. I was a Boatswain’s Mate. Normally that’s a shipboard position, but I did a lot of different land-based stuff in my final 10 years because I was also a Master Training Specialist. I taught at the Center for Naval Leadership in Newport, RI, I taught at NAVOSH (Navy Occupational Safety & Health) which is the Navy’s version of OSHA, I taught all kinds of things. Then I did personal security work for the Navy. We were over in the desert; we picked people up from the airport and drove them to wherever they were supposed to be, and then got them back safely. 

Thank you for your service, Lynn. What did you do after retiring from the Navy? 

I was a park ranger for the city of Hampton, VA, but that only pays in beautiful sunrises and sunsets. I realized that I was not making enough money to be away from my family. I picked up a job writing for a marketing company. I moved up and eventually became the head of social media for them. I was also in college at the time, using my GI Bill. I was an English major for a while, then I was a Geology major for a while, and then I left. They either wanted two more math classes, or two more foreign language classes, and I just didn’t have it in me at the time. So, then I went into real estate. I was the kilted real estate agent of Virginia for about five years! 

Kilted…as in a Scottish kilt? 

Yes. I had 14 kilts. My family heritage is Scottish, we came to this country way back in 1533. At one point, you could Google ‘kilted real estate agent’ and all you would have found was me. I filled the first four pages of Google! Now there’s a whole bunch of them around the country!

You started a trend, I guess! Does that bring us up to date?

Not quite. For the three years after that, before I enrolled at Tulsa Welding School, I was a professional party animal, festival goer, and traveler!

After three years as a party animal, how did you find yourself on the EA program at TWS? 

Funny story…I was driving around with my dog in the back of my Jeep; the top was down, and it was a hot day. I needed to get some water for my dog, and I happened to see Tulsa Welding School. I raced in to get water for my dog, and I ended up shooting the breeze with the woman at the counter, learning what the school did. When she talked about electrical, I thought, “Well, I’m doing a lot of electrical work at my dad’s house, maybe I should learn how to do it properly?” When I found out that they accept the GI Bill, I thought, why not? 

Did you have electrical any experience, or was this out of the blue?

I had done some basic electrical stuff as a homeowner like changing receptacles or GFI plugs, and having been a real estate agent, I’d seen the work done by electricians and inspectors. I had a general idea of what I was doing with electricity. I just didn’t know the code. I wanted to understand it better to help out my dad at his old house. I just wanted to learn how to do it right, I had no intention of becoming an electrician or making it my next career. I was retired!

What did you enjoy most about your time at TWS? 

I really enjoyed the hands-on work and experience. I didn’t realize how much I was going to enjoy the work until I was working with the instructors at school. I had some great instructors, most of them were really good. They taught me stuff that interested me and made me want to learn more. I can’t say enough about Joe Weidenaar, he’s a great instructor; he got real hands on. He helped me realize how much I enjoyed it. 

Did the program come easy to you, or were there frustrations?

I’d like to be able to tell you that there were frustrations to make this a cool story, but the reality is it was easy for me.

So, you graduated in June, where are you working?

I am working for Vanguard Electrical Contractors in Jacksonville: we do commercial, industrial, and some residential electrical work. I started in mid-August.

How did you get the job?

As I said, I had no intention of becoming an electrician, but one day I was on Facebook, and I saw there was an electrical job fair at this address. I didn’t have a whole lot going on, so I thought let’s go see what I can get into. So, I went down to this job fair, which didn’t turn out to be a job fair at all, it was just Vanguard hiring. I chatted with them, and we both decided to give it a shot.

Are you happy with where you’ve started out financially?

I don’t really think much about money because money isn’t going to be on my headstone. Master Electrician will be on my headstone! But honestly, I wasn’t thrilled with the pay they started me at, but I also understand I’m just coming into the field. I can’t start at top tier pay. I know I have to prove myself, prove my worth, and that’s fine. I don’t mind that. That’s what I’m doing right now. I’m doing 90 days of proving myself, and then at the end of my probation in mid-November, I do intend to negotiate for better pay. 

You’ve got to know your own worth. So, what’s your career plan from here, Lynn?

Well, I’m retired, so I’m only going to do what I enjoy. I am 49 years old; my wife is a nurse who’s 10 years younger than me and looks like a model; I drive a Harley, a Jeep, and a Mustang, so, yeah, I am that guy! If I don’t enjoy something, I’m not going to keep doing it. Sure, it’s nice to have some extra money coming in, but I’m already getting my Navy pension, so money isn’t my motivation. Lifestyle is my motivation!

My intention is to continue doing electrical work and get my Journeyman’s license. Then I’d really like to put Master Electrician after my name, among other things. It should only take me another two years or so to get my Journeyman’s because I’ve been to school, that time counts. I may also go back to TWS and complete the Electro-Mechanical Technologies program; I’d like to add HVAC/refrigeration to my skill set. 

Okay, so you clearly enjoy education and learning, is that right?

If given the opportunity, I’d be happy to just go to school for the rest of my life and learn everything I can. I’m perfectly happy in classrooms and learning the hands-on stuff. Learning all the trades would be great! But then again, there’s also learning Astronomy! I was a Geology major, actually I was majoring in Hydrogeology, so from the water under the earth, to the stars above it – there’s always something to learn.

What do you enjoy most about this new trade?

It’s clean cut. Electricity works the way that electricity is going to work. The law is Ohm’s Law; wiring is wiring, everything makes sense. There are no gray areas. You can calculate everything. It’s just a big math problem. You look at the code, the code says you can do this, so you do it. It’s black or white.

You graduated in June; did you make friends or connections, people you have stayed in touch with?

I did, and it’s funny you ask because just yesterday I was at a job at the hospital, and as I’m walking out to go to lunch, one of my classmates, Ruben and his wife, were walking in. We reconnected as we’d lost touch a little; we talked about going to dinner or something. I also still speak to another guy, Dan; in fact, we were talking just today and he asked about Vanguard and if I like working here. 

What one piece of advice do you have for someone to be successful at Tulsa Welding School? 

Nothing will take the place of persistence. 

If you’re a TWS graduate and would like to share your success and be an inspiration to others, please email [email protected] to be considered for a Graduate Connection interview. Please include details such as your graduation date (month/year), program, and campus name (Tulsa/Jacksonville/Houston/Dallas).