Empowering Others: Marco Ventura’s Dual Legacy of Service and Mentorship

From serving on the front lines to commercial construction, Marco Ventura’s journey is a powerful testament to leadership, mentorship, and dedication. Read on to discover how his military service shaped his electrical career.

One of the best parts of the construction industry is the positive mentoring that workers receive from those around them. Marco Ventura of IES San Antonio is a perfect example of someone whose passion was ignited by a great mentor and then turned his skills as an electrician into a career of change. As we celebrate Careers in Construction Month and look ahead to Veteran’s Day, Marco’s story highlights the importance of skilled craftsmen who spent years perfecting their trade while EMPOWERING others with that knowledge and the dedicated service of our brave armed service members.

Marco joined the Army immediately after graduating high school, and when his tour ended, he joined the Army Reserves as he rejoined the civilian workforce. While pursuing work, an opportunity at Bexar Electric (now IES Texas) caught his attention. It was under the tutelage of David Kotara, Job Superintendent, that he discovered his passion for the trade and became a journeyman within four years.

“I liked the way (David) ran his people and the way he did stuff,” Marco said. “I told myself, ‘This is what I want to do. I want to be a supervisor someday, just like this man was.’ I later learned that he was a Vietnam veteran, and it all made sense why we worked so well together.”

Following Sept. 11, 2001, Marco was called to active duty to serve in the Middle East after performing his military duty, he would return to IES. This would occur again in 2005 (Kosovo), 2008 (Iraq) and 2012 (Afghanistan). During his final tour in Afghanistan, Marco was temporarily assigned to an engineering unit that was short an electrical journeyman to train Afghan soldiers in the electrical trade. The difficulty of this training was compounded by a language barrier where all instruction needed to pass through an interpreter to soldiers with less than a third-grade education. Marco pushed through, however, and brought his years of electrical trade experience to the other side of the world.

“They didn’t know how to ground anything, and we were using a generator to get power to the panel to get the lights on,” Marco said. “They were really amazed! It was a great experience to be able to show them my trade and give them a trade, too.”

After his first 90 days with the team of Afghan soldiers, they were tasked to wire a new office building that had been reconstructed from an old set of military barracks. “For them to see their hard work, when the lights turned on and the plugs worked, was a great experience,” Marco said.

Marco returned to IES in 2020, where his leadership has helped shaped the Pre-Fabrication department. Events like CICM month help us better understand the importance of mentorship. When we lift others up with our knowledge and leadership, we POWER change and hope for the trade. We want to thank Marco for his selfless service to our grateful country.

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