In 1998, Mark Oeser was hired as a Maintenance Specialist at Elizabeth School District. His plan was to put his skills to work and eventually retire from the school district. After 27 years of hard work and dedicated service, Oeser has achieved that goal and is ready for retirement. December will mark the last month for Oeser as ESD Facilities Director. The following is a Q&A session with Oeser about his time working for Elizabeth School District.

Q. What was your favorite part of working here?

A. The daily challenge. Each day was different and challenging. I liked coming into work not knowing what you are doing that day because of the various jobs we were asked to do.

Q. Was your plan to spend as much time as you did here?

A. I figured I would retire here and 27 years is a good run. I would stay a bit longer, but I feel good and healthy and there’s other things I want to do. So, it’s a good time for me to go into sub-retirement. I will come back in February part-time.

Q. What are some of the most notable projects you’ve been part of?

A. Most of it revolves around HVAC jobs. With an older system comes challenges like boilers needing work. I remember, at the high school, the heating system failed one year and water got onto the gym floor. We had to cut the gym floor out because of the floor heaving. Another time, the Brickyard also flooded because of a heating issue. That was a big deal. We also had issues with the water wells. Some of the biggest challenges in time were water related. Some of those projects include the well at Singing Hills Elementary and the water tower not going as planned in regards to the scheduling of it and irrigation.

Q. What were some of the bright spots of working for Elizabeth School District?

A. All of the experiences were rewarding. I loved working with the guys back in the old days. We were a young crew 15 years ago and I’m proud of what we were able to accomplish, and we did it in the beginning with little money and experience. I loved working with my team and the comradery that we had.

Q. What were some of the biggest snowstorms of your career that you had to deal with?

A. We had a lot of big ones. They all kind of blend together. If it wasn’t the amount of snow that fell down, it was the wind and the huge drifts that it would leave behind. There was one snowstorm where I reset the odometer on my truck and put 80 miles on it without leaving the high school parking lot. There was lots of plowing going on!

Q. What were some of the skills you learned along the way?

A. Pretty much anything I accomplished came from working here and especially from learning the HVAC systems. Before joining the school distirct, I was a carpenter and poured concrete, but everything else I had to learn on site. Back in the day, there were no contractors to call. My team was the last line of defense so we had to figure things out and get the jobs done. We had to, because there was no other choice. It’s not like we could call a plumber or HVAC guy or anyone else. It was just us. I can also say that nobody got hurt along the way which is a great thing.

Q. What will you be doing in retirement?

A. I have many hobbies and all are not cheap. Coming back to the school district to work part-time will help. I like to reload bullets, I tie flies, make lures, ride the ATV, I go hunting, fishing, ride dirt bikes and do pretty much anything outside. My new hobby is fly rod building. I don’t have any specific travel plans. My thought was to get some camping in, add that camper to my truck and head West or South. I will be doing a lot of fishing trips. I will also be getting back into some fine wood working and cabinet making. I like small engine repair. I like fixing things. I have a nice shop for it now at home and I’m looking forward to doing all of that.