Sonia Cruz – Lead Technical Instructor, Earth Forward Group, Connecticut

How did you first get interested and involved in weatherization?

• By pure chance. As a displaced worker, I was referred to a program offering the opportunity to participate in a “Women Can Weld” training program. As part of the enrollment process, I took a general knowledge test (which I passed with flying colors) and selected Weatherization as an answer to other interests. The intake coordinator explained that as a welder, I would have to complete a two-year apprenticeship after the six-month training before I could be hired as a full-fledged welder. Or, I could enroll in their Weatherization Program, complete it in a couple of months and be ready to work in the field with two BPI Certifications, OSHA 10, LRRP Certification (all of which I had no clue what they were), and that they would help get me a job. The rest is history, as they say. By the way, I was 55 years old at the beginning of that roller coaster ride. Eleven years later, I retired, and six months after that, I was recruited by Earth Forward Group to pass on my knowledge to the young ones in trade schools.

Tell us about your current and past roles in weatherization.

• I was briefly involved with the WAP program in Connecticut as one of their contractors.
• I was 55 years old when I became involved in weatherization. Eleven years later, I retired, and six months after that, I was recruited by Earth Forward Group (EFG) to pass on my knowledge to the young ones in trade schools. I now teach Building Science Principles, Healthy Home Principles, GPRO, BPI BA-T, and Proctor BA-T for EFG’s BPI Training Center.

What is it like being a woman in weatherization? Advantages? Challenges?

• About challenges – overcoming the stigma of “that’s a man’s job” (not being “one of the boys”), I had to prove every day that I can do this job, even if I’m a girl, and handle off-color jokes from my co-workers.
• But as a woman, I had one advantage that really mattered: attention to detail. I don’t think there is anyone more detail-oriented than a woman.

Why do you work in weatherization? What about your job makes you excited to go to work in the morning?

• When I was working in Weatherization, I loved that. Although I was doing the same work over and over, it was always different – different houses, different people, different challenges, and every day I had the opportunity to help someone figure out what was going on in their homes. That was especially gratifying when I had male clients who were home waiting for their home audit; and I showed up at the door and was able to explain in detail what was going on and how it not only could but should be fixed. That made me excited to go to work in the mornings.

Do you have advice for other women interested in joining the weatherization field.

• Don’t be afraid and go for it!