Still Building America—Austin Fahey does what he loves, sky-high

Getting high on the job is ordinarily a ticket back to your couch. There are those among us, however, that take altitude seriously enough to make a living in rarified air. Twenty-year-old Austin Fahey is one of these people who lights up while adding shape to the skyline.

A vocational class in high school was where Austin first experienced the rush all welders feel when playing with fire. By his senior year, he was able to stack his schedule with all shop classes, which was, in his own word, “awesome.”

A teacher in one of these classes advised Austin to enroll in a trade school to concentrate on welding for his secondary education. A year at Northeast Iowa Community College learning from an experienced faculty prepped him for what was to come.

“…we did just about everything that fits into the welding area. It was probably the best school year I had; our teachers were retired pipeline welders.”

Now a welder for Rainbo Oil, Austin fabricates oil tanks with capacities up to 500 gallons and does repair work on leaking tanks. He also works for Sign Service, which is where being lifted is the norm.

“At Sign Service I have welded big 100-ft. sign poles in the air, and to do that you have to have a crane lift the pole up while you are lifted in a boom truck. You weld at probably 40-60 ft. Sometimes it’s higher; the highest I've gone is 105 ft., which is as far as the boom reaches.

“My favorite part of the job is just welding; I don't care what it is, anytime I'm welding I'm in my own zone, focused. I also like the challenge, because you have days in which you just can't get some sort of weld done right, and that's when you really gotta concentrate.”

Farther down the road, Austin is hoping to build his own business with a couple of his friends. They’re all avid hunters who mostly go after duck, so the obvious direction is to go with what you know. They want to fabricate duck boats from “start to finish.” He, along with one mate, would do the welding, while a buddy who is an accountant would take care of the business side of things. As a team, they have all their bases covered.

“My advice to my peers out there would be to find something you like doing, because, as the old saying goes, ‘If you do what you love, you won't work a day in your life.’ I couldn't sit in an office all day; it's just not for me, and that's kind of how I ended up where I am. Anything that a person is interested in, say it be hunting or maybe it's fitness—really anything—there is some sort of business opportunity behind it. So pick what you love doing and find a way to make a living doing that thing.

“The only thing stopping you from doing what you really want to do is the BS story you keep telling yourself as to why you can't do it.”

All images courtesy of Austin Fahey.

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