Justin with Cesar Guevara (left) and Sean
Dischner (right) on the job site of the Orange
County Flood Protection project in Fullerton, CA.
BUILDING OPPORTUNITY
Justin Turk moved from the East Coast to the West Coast for L.B. Foster Co.
HBy Jess Campbell uman beings love routine and
all things familiar; uncharted
waters are generally looked
upon as being pretty darn scary.
What, then, could possibly cause someone
to uproot all they’ve ever known and
move 2,500 miles across the country from
the safe and familiar to the decidedly very
unfamiliar?
That’s easy: opportunity.
Starting small
Justin Turk of L.B. Foster Company made
the scary decision to move from his hometown
of Newcastle, Pa. to Irvine, Calif.,
about five years ago. But it wasn’t a snap
decision by any means, as Turk had created
a good life for himself on the East Coast.
“I went to school at Westminster College,
a small Liberal Arts Division 3 college; I was
a business major. I worked construction in
the summer throughout college. After graduation,
I got a job at W&K Steel,” he said. “I
worked there for two years and then got on
board with L.B. Foster in the fabricated
bridge division. I was there for about four
years, working as a project manager and
worked up to a senior level project manager.
Then Don Foster, who was VP of construction
at the time, asked if I wanted to go
into piling sales. So, I went over there and
repped for Western Pennsylvania, Western
New York, Ohio and West Virginia for about
two years.”
In 2014, an opportunity came up in
Southern California in the piling division as
CONSTRUCTION CAREER
a result of a retirement. Although Turk had
never seen the West Coast – let alone lived
there – he had the support of his family. He
also felt another “sign” that told him it was
the right move.
“At the time, it was winter. It was really,
really cold. So, it was an easy yes for me!”
Big moves
Turk knew that to reach the goals he had
for his career that California was where he
needed to be. Plus, timing was everything.
“I grew up in a really small town and
attended college locally, about 40 minutes
away. At the time, I was a single guy in my
late 20s and I just thought if there was ever
a time in my life when it was a good idea to
move 2,500 miles away, it was then.”
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