Children tend to follow in their parents’ footsteps. Watching their heroes from a young age, they mimic their mothers and fathers as they play, and they often come alongside them in their work. Jesus Godoy is no exception. Growing up, Jesus would help his dad, Eliceo, who worked in construction, as he did stucco work and similar projects. But, like many parents, Jesus’ father wanted more for him. Jesus recalls Eliceo telling him, “You need to go to school, so you don’t have to be working here in the field.” That stuck with him throughout high school, when engineering captured Jesus’ interest. “In my senior year, I took an engineering class where they showed us how to program LEGO robots. Doing different tasks like that was fun. Since I was already learning how to code, I initially decided to major in software engineering.” Jesus went off to ASU in 2016 doing just that, but later decided it was not for him. Reminded of how much he enjoyed the time working with his dad, Jesus switched to construction management and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Construction Management and Technology in May of 2019.
Before graduating, Jesus attended a career fair at ASU, where Haydon had a booth and featured a project Jesus recognized, The Salvation Army Kroc Center in South Phoenix. Shortly after speaking with our recruiters, Jeremy Telkamp and Jessica Henderson, Jesus came on as an intern in the summer of 2019. He had friends interning elsewhere, but they would just be “thrown out there and left to be on their own.” But at Haydon, “they actually had a planned-out program,” and “everybody was really welcoming.” Jesus did his internship working with our Heavy Civil estimating team, doing whatever was asked of him. Having worked with Estimating Engineer, Joe Grant, Jesus recalls, “I was constantly bombarding him with questions, but he was always happy to help.” And working under Andy Flecky, Chief Estimator, Jesus reminisces, “Andy came from a business background, but with the amount of stuff he knows about construction—I was like, wow, this guy! I want to be like him one day.”
Impressed by Jesus, Andy hired him as a full-time Estimating Engineer in December of 2019. “Jesus is amazing to work with,” says Andy. “From the beginning of his internship, he jumped in with both feet and quickly became a go-to member of the Haydon team as someone who gets things done. What impresses me most is that he embraces improvements in areas outside his comfort zone and is always looking for ways to improve. We are lucky to have him on our team.”
Eighteen months later, Jesus is satisfied and feels rewarded in his career, “Especially,” he says, “when we do hard bids, as we split up our own assignments but then come together with a complete proposal. Whether we win or lose, just the fact that we take our different responsibilities and together come to a consensus—it’s teamwork. I just like being there.” Jesus also appreciates the individual responsibility he has been given. Having done estimations for our Colcord Bridge, east of Payson, Jesus recalls Joe Grant giving him initial guidance, but then, “He kind of trusted me. I pretty much looked at that one from all angles in. There’s a lot of it. It was good knowing that I got the chance to actually get involved with that one.”
Jesus is now able to pass on his experience to a current intern. Working on the Tankersly waterline replacement in Gilbert, he was able to teach her to do on-site materials takeoffs. “We’re going to use these to calculate a price for the project owner,” he told her. There is a lot to learn, and interns are given several tasks that may initially seem menial to them, but indeed contribute to the significance to the overall project. To help interns better see the importance, Jesus generally advises them to be inquisitive. “Ask a lot of questions—even if you think you know what the answer is. You’ll get a better understanding of why you’re doing what you’re doing, and how that applies to you. You’ll get to know the purpose of it. I am asking estimators questions all the time, especially now that they’re teaching me a little bit more about their roles, and as I’m trying to transition to what they do.”
Having walked in his father’s footsteps, but also taken his advice, Jesus has been able to use his education and his internship and experience at Haydon to find himself in a rewarding career and with a legacy to pass on to future generations. Jesus says to current college students, “The opportunity to be part of Haydon and to realize how incredible the jobs are in my community has been very rewarding. Since day one, you know that you are part of a team that shares a strong passion for construction. I encourage anyone who seeks to fulfill their excitement for construction to consider Haydon.”
