Feel Good Friday: Exemplifying What “Sargento Family” Means

For four months, Sr. Electrical Engineer Steve “Opie” Oplatek’s wife Kathy was unable to physically get into their home. Following a leg amputation procedure, Kathy had been staying at her father’s house because it had a wheelchair ramp.

Upon hearing of this situation, it didn’t take long for the Sargento Family in Elkhart Lake to jump into action and demonstrate our value of Mutual Support for Opie and Kathy.

Electrical Engineering Manager Chris Blohm reached out to Opie to develop a plan to have Kathy be able to safely get in and out of the home. 

Construction Engineer Tim Kraus became involved in the project and shared, “I love to do handiwork so, this was a perfect opportunity for us to get out there and do something.”

After the team created a design for a wheelchair ramp Tim Kraus put together the list of materials to create an ADA compliant ramp. The original design was not ADA compliant; however, the team used their Creativity to redesign for ADA compliance and received a building permit. The team also integrated a set of stairs into the side of the ramp that was not originally included.

After adapting the design and ordering the materials, Director – Innovation Engineering Tim Hepner completed some preconstruction to increase the project’s efficiency.

“I had all the materials delivered to my house. They came by Wednesday night and loaded up Eric Schmitt’s trailer and took the materials to Tim Hepner’s house. He has a nice shop, and they prebuilt the two platforms. By the time they came on Friday, it was just like clockwork,” shared Opie.

Opie, Tim Hepner, and Tim Kraus attributed the success of this project to the teamwork of the Sargento Family. A full list of all those who built the ramp can be found below.

“We did have good support people. It was a very nice team-building event for our group. I think it’s those relationships that help us do work here at Sargento,” shared Tim Hepner.

“We had some key players, not just us. It takes a team. Eric loaned us his trailer that help us transfer dirt and a tree that ended up at my house, which I don’t know how that happened. A lot of other people, as they had time, came and went. Some of the guys were working for Sargento on Friday so they came after lunch. The crew ebbed and flowed during the day. You don’t do anything without the team,” said Tim Kraus.

The team also displayed their value of Humor and Fun by developing inside jokes during the project and debating music tastes. With ten team members on Friday and eight on Saturday, the team was able to build the ramp in just two days.

“It’s always fun to have a project with project managers trying to figure out who is going to be the project manager,” smiled Tim Hepner.

However, this ensured the ramp was solidly built. “That thing is never going anywhere. It could take a nuclear strike,” laughed Opie.

Once the ramp was built, Opie’s wife came home to try it out.

“It was the first time back in the house in four months. That was emotional for her, and me, and the cats,” shared Opie. “She uses it a lot. She uses it to go out. She goes in the backyard. She can get out the house. It’s nice she can do it herself. It’s great. Seriously, I can’t thank the team enough.” 

“When Steve brought his wife and rolled up, we thought that was pretty cool,” reflected Tim Hepner. “Seeing it come to fruition there and see her enjoy it is why we did it.” 

“I can honestly say when Sargento says ‘Hire good people and treat them like family,’ they mean it. I am so glad I came to Sargento. This really is a great company. It is the best company I’ve ever worked for. I always feel that someone’s got your back here,” reflected Opie, showing his team eagerly lives out what it means to be a part of the Sargento Family.

The ramp at the Oplatek home was built within a month of planning and two days of building. 

Members of the Sargento Family who helped with the ramp build:

Marek Stanislawczyk – Sr. Electrical Engineer – Operational Technology

Jordan Schuessler – Engineering Manager - Construction

Allen Kellar – Engineering Manager – Building Systems

Brett Kraemer – Associate Director Engineering Facilities

Lucas Kuhn – Sr. Project Engineer

Kal Kudipady – Electrical Engineer

Eric Schmitt – Sr. Project Engineer

Chris Blohm - Electrical Engineering Manager

Jonathon Theys – CAD Technician

Tim Kraus – Construction Engineer

Tim Hepner - Director – Innovation Engineering

Steve Oplatek - Sr. Electrical Engineer

Brian Jenny – Director – Production Engineering

Doug Dreger – Innovation Engineering Designer

Christian Tango-an – Project Engineer Building Systems

Gary Jaeger – Engineering Principal - Construction

Gavin Loescher – Electrical Engineer

Chad Evenson – Director of Engineering

Kay Regan - Administrative Assistant