Graduate Connections – Meet Sheri Cata

Sheri, 31, from Sapulpa, OK, completed the seven-month Professional Welder program at Tulsa Welding School in January 2024. 

Thanks for your time, Sheri. What did you do before coming to TWS? 

I was a stay-at-home mom. When my ex-husband and I got divorced – very amicably, we have kids – I went to work for Amazon for 18 months at a warehouse. Amazon offers their people access to trade schools; there are certain trade schools that you can go to, and Amazon will pay for it. I thought that was cool, so I looked into it. 

That is cool. Where did the idea of welding come from? 

I actually originally came to visit Tulsa Welding School, expecting to go into the HVAC program. I didn’t expect to fall in love with the idea of welding on the tour. I decided that I was totally more hands-on, more creative and I wanted to do welding instead. But, not three weeks after I enrolled in Tulsa Welding School through Amazon, they decided to lay off a bunch of people, including myself. 

Oh, that sucks; we’ll come back to that. What was it that made you fall in love with welding?

When I went in to take a tour, we talked about the programs, but they also asked about me. They asked a lot of questions about what I’d previously done, what I enjoyed – all of that. I told them that I’m very crafty, I’m a seamstress. Because of that creativity, I guess, they asked me if I’d ever thought about welding? I didn’t even really think that was an option. But, seeing as how I’m crafty and don’t like to sit still – I’m on the move all the time – they thought that I might be better suited to welding. So, I walked through the welding lab, saw what people were doing, and that’s when I thought, “I think that this could be a thing.”

So, after Amazon laid you off, you decided to continue on with the program yourself?

I was about three weeks in and really enjoying it. I had two choices. Give up on it or keep doing it. So, I decided to continue. I really loved the welding, it was fun. So, without Amazon, I had to figure out another way to pay for it, and the school helped me through that. I got another job as a medical courier, driving hospice medication around, and I kept going. I told myself it’ll be okay, I’ll make it, I know I can do this. 

And you did! What did you enjoy most about your time at TWS? 

I’ll just be honest, I liked playing with fire; I liked being shown how to do that. When I discovered all the different ways you can do that, the different welding processes, that was what really made me go, “Huh!”

Did you have some difficult times?

I did have to rephase – which means retaking a class – due to just not understanding the concept of what was going on. I did that because I felt like I could do better, I knew I could do better. I wasn’t doing very well, I wanted to give up multiple, multiple times.

How did you overcome that, and not quit?

I am quite stubborn! I never allowed myself to just quit. I couldn’t quit. My kids were depending on me to do this, and they were so proud of me. They’re 11 and 12 and they’ve always been very proud of their mom. I didn’t want to disappoint them, to let them down.

What helped you through those difficulties? 

Definitely my instructors, and not just the instructor that I had in that moment, but my first phase instructor, David Wilkins. He was always there, literally always there if I needed something. The instructors there care. I have some medical issues. I have super-low iron, so I tend to get anemic pretty quickly. If I don’t eat, I can’t speak, and I’ve almost passed out in my booth because I forgot to eat. My instructors were always keeping after me on that, reminding me. I’d stay from the morning class till the afternoon. Some days, when I needed extra practice or when I needed a little extra time in there, I’d sometimes forget to eat. They were always motivating me, coming by to help, making sure I wasn’t passing out!

Where are you working?

So, I have shared custody of my kids with their dad. I get them every other week and I don’t have anybody that I can really rely on to pick them up from, or take them to school, not five days a week anyway. So, I needed a weekend shift job. Finding that in welding is hard, not impossible, but hard. I was determined though, and I actually just got hired on at Valmont Industries in Tulsa for a Friday, Saturday, Sunday shift. I finally got a job! 

I’ve been trying to get a job since I graduated. I got really depressed and kind of bummed out. As a woman in the welding field, and needing such a specific work schedule, it got depressing. I tried going through a couple of hiring agencies and at one specifically, the gentleman was determined to tell me that finding a weekend job was going to be impossible and that I shouldn’t even be trying, even though I told him that that’s all I could do because of my kids.

Well done for persevering and finding the ideal job for your situation. What are you working on?

Building electrical towers, the big ones, and small ones you see in substations. They do metal core welding, which is actually hotter than MIG or flux, it’s kind of a combination. It’s not super hard. 

Are you happy with the money you’ll be starting out on? 

At school they told us to expect around $18 to $20 an hour getting out of school because we’re new welders with no real experience. But starting pay at this company is $24/hour. That literally made me cry because I’m almost 32 years old, and I have never been able to financially sustain my family on my own. Now, thanks to this, I’ll finally be able to do that. Plus, I get a first raise after 90 days and a second in six months. It’s 36 hours a week, 5 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, but I get paid for 40 hours!

Congratulations, that’s awesome. As your kids get older, you won’t have to work weekends forever.

My oldest is 13 this summer and my youngest is 12 in November, so I won’t have to wait too terribly long before I’ll be able to actually do a little more. In time I’d like to move to working during the week, so I have my weekends free again, but for now, this works perfectly. It’s what I’ve been waiting for. 

How are you finding it so far?

I haven’t started yet – I just got the call today! I have my orientation on May 15/16, and then the following week I’ll start with three weeks training. That’s another cool thing about Valmont; they train you on their exact process, they don’t just throw you to the wolves. That’s awesome because I was very nervous even going there for the weld test! I went back to school to brush up for the test and was extremely nervous. My instructors just kept telling me, “Just do what you do for us, and you’ve got this! You’ve got everything that you need to know for this, you’ve got this, I promise!” I guess they were right!

What’s your career plan from here, Sheri?

Eventually? Once my kids are grown, I would like to travel and do TIG more than anything. It’s prettier. I was pretty good at TIG at school, once I got the hang of it. Let me tell you though, me getting the hang of it had a lot to do with the instructors taking the time to go through the terms, taking the time to direct me with little tweaks. That all got me to not only where they expected, but above what they expected. 

What do you enjoy most about welding?

I’m probably weird here, but I enjoy the heat. I enjoy the intensity of it and the fact that I have to pay attention – I have to focus. I’ve got my PPE on, I’ve got my glasses on, I’ve got my ear plugs in, and the rest of the world is just null and void. Nothing else is in my ear, or in my face. I don’t even hear my phone, nothing. I like being able to just zone in to the now and do what I like to do.

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

Show up. Be present. Ask questions. If you absolutely can’t show up, always find a way to make it up. Those are the key things I can tell people. Don’t be afraid to ask questions because, trust me, these instructors are willing to help. You just have to be willing to speak up and ask for it.

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).