Hannah Roppo: A Career Takes Flight

As a star athlete in high school, Hannah Roppo had set her future hopes on playing soccer in college. But, when the pandemic hit, her dream was interrupted — along with her interest in school itself. The only classes that held her attention were welding and woodshop.

“I found I really enjoyed working with my hands and mastering a craft,” said Hannah. “I decided I didn’t want to go to college, but I wanted to get into a trade. My big brother is in the trades, and I saw him working hard and making a lot of money.”

After graduation, Hannah took a job in a sheet metal shop, gaining good experience that led her to the warehouse side of the business. Serving in will-call, she had a lot of opportunity to talk with teammates in the field as they came by to pick up parts.

“The techs would tell me about what it’s like in the field and would say that I should go for it and that I would succeed,” she said.

A Career takes Flight

Hannah took the step to apply to a union hall for an apprenticeship where she impressed her interviewers, including Service Manager Noah Kandler, who brought her on board for a role on McKinstry’s Service team.

“Getting in with McKinstry was just awesome,” said Hannah. “It’s not what I expected; it’s way better than I expected.”

As a Service apprentice, Hannah loves how each day is different as she builds up more and more responsibility.

“It’s rewarding when a journeyman shows you how to do something or has faith in you to go and do it — and then you actually succeed,” said Hannah. “It’s a confidence builder and a block you get to build off of.”

Encouraging Women to Consider the Trades

Asked about Women in Construction Week, Hannah acknowledged that women may still find difficulties in the male-dominated trades, but that she’s happy about the progress.

“I think we’re in a time where people encourage women’s participation in the trades and it’s not frowned upon,” said Hannah. “I don’t think it’s necessary to have Women in Construction Week, but I think it’s cool how it’s recognized that it’s becoming more normalized for women.”

She invites other women to take a chance on the trades if it’s something they’re curious about.

“I would say to take the leap of faith; It’s super rewarding and there’s a lot of value in having a career that makes good money and teaches so much you can do,” she said.

Building a Career With Trusted Partnerships

At this early stage of her career, Hannah says the McKinstry value to “Build Trusted Partnerships” resonates strongly with her.

“Going through this apprenticeship, there’s a lot to learn and having people next to you who you can depend on to not only teach you, but to encourage you and keep your spirits high is extremely important,” she said.

Staying Open to Possibilities

Though life momentarily benched her plans, it’s clear Hannah, whose motto is “work hard; play harder,” wasn’t meant to stay on the sidelines for long.

“There were a couple of years where I really didn’t know what I wanted to do for a career, but I told myself there was no harm in trying something just to see how I liked it,” she said. “And it ended up being the best choice. I’m on a career path that I’ll be on for the rest of my working career, and it’ll be super rewarding.”

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