Twenty-eight years ago a gift for math set an East Wenatchee bowling alley employee on a career path he had never envisioned. A group of bowlers were talking about taking the test for an engineering technician job at the State Department of Transportation. Thirty-six year old Gregg Hallead joined them and took his Economics degree from Central Washington State College and the test – scored fourth highest among the 95 applicants and was eventually hired as a Tech I in the Wenatchee WSDOT Project Engineering Office. Seventeen years later, now a Transportation Engineer 3, Gregg was promoted to the Plans Office where he is now the engineer charged with analyzing the design, plans, specifications and estimates for every project to be advertised for private contractor bids in the region.
Would he apply again, if he knew then, what he knows now? Gregg says, “Yes - You won’t get rich, but the work is important and rewarding, I enjoy the people I work with, they’re more like a family and the office is successful – We produce good work!”
Hallead never strayed far from home. He was born in Wenatchee, grew up in Cashmere, went to college in Ellensburg and except for a short stint with a management company in Seattle after college, has lived his 64 years in the Wenatchee Valley. He and his wife Paula have six children and eight grandchildren between them. “The nest is empty, now,” says Gregg,” so there’s time for hobbies. We travel and enjoy sampling the casinos. I’m an avid golfer. And I guess I need to include lawn mowing since Paula loves to fertilize everything!”
Gregg is well known outside the North Central Region as he has been a leading volunteer coordinating the annual WSDOT bowling and golf tournaments for years. His wife Paula is the Party Coordinator for Eastmont Lanes, so Gregg still has a direct family connection to his “pre-WSDOT” career.
Would he encourage others to consider a career with WSDOT? “Sure,” says Gregg, “but the message I really want to send is to the “seasoned” employees like me. The most critical thing we must do is mentor our new and young employees. All of us should be training our replacement!”
Featured Employee Listing