Update: After last week's posting about the Space Shuttle status, I continued my research when I talked to Anthony, an ironworker from Cocoa Beach (which adjoins Cape Canaveral). I asked him about activity at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) where he usually works. He responded that there are projects going on at the Space Center, keeping it up to date and preparing for more activity. "It is not going to go away, though a lot of jobs have been lost" he commented.
I have known Anthony for about three years. His parents live next door to a condo we visit in Cocoa Beach. He and his family are there quite often. He is outgoing, likeable, and articulate. He has been a ironworker, mostly at the Space Center, for several years. He has worked on both Space Shuttle pads and some of the other launch pads as well. He has worked a lot in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). Ironworkers are those people who put together the basic structure of buildings, bridges, and the like. They are the guys up in the air!
We talked a little bit about his career as an ironworker. "I love it! I walked my first beam at 325 feet in the air. I have been as high as 520 feet" -- in the VAB. Recently Anthony has been working on a project at Disney World in Orlando, a little over an hour from Cocoa Beach. They are refurbishing the Space Mountain roller coaster. Among other things, Anthony has been involved in creating a special stainless steel railing. He told me he can't wait to take his family back and ride and say "I made that."
Wikipedia entry for the VAB here
See what Wikipedia says about ironworkers here.
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