Rising From the Ground Up: The Journey of Thomas Titsworth

When Thomas Titsworth walked into the hiring hall of IBEW Local 1186, he wasn’t just looking for work. He was looking for a lifeline. At fifty years old, unemployed, and standing at a crossroads, he did what determined workers do when life demands a reset: he kept moving. He had a CDL license, years of driving experience with local companies, and a lifetime of taking on whatever hard work came his way. He didn’t know much about the trades or construction, but he knew trucks, he knew grit, and he knew how to show up. What he didn’t know was that he was about to find a place where all of that finally mattered.

Thomas had options. He considered other trades. But the union offered something none of those paths could promise: stability, benefits, and a future he could count on. Five years in, he was vested and building a career rooted in the skills he had spent decades sharpening. He originally walked in because they needed a CDL driver, but the union saw more than a license. They saw someone who understood people, someone who could learn the field, someone who could become a groundman. Thomas calls groundmen “the laborers who keep everything moving,” and stepping into that role changed the direction of his life.

His first opportunity came with Henkels & McCoy, and then nearly a decade working at Pacific Power. In those years, he learned the inner workings of the system and the realities of the field. He watched Local 1186 grow, and he watched it shift. When he joined nearly fifteen years ago, he saw how the union protected workers, how consistency mattered, and how real change could make things better. He also saw how leadership shapes everything, and that not every leader brings the right kind of change. As he watched the union evolve, especially during the challenges groundsmen faced when pressured to join the laborers union, something in him sparked. He began to feel the pull toward serving on the union board, toward being part of the solution.

Over time, Thomas became more than a groundman. He became a steady presence, a worker who understood both the field and the people in it. He spent fifteen years in IBEW 1186, including ten years with Pacific Power, earning respect not through words but through consistency. He showed up. He worked hard. He kept the job moving. He met all kinds of people—good ones, tough ones, the kind you only meet in the trades. And if you ask him about the job that meant the most, he’ll tell you about the wind farm in Haleiwa. He loved that project. It was demanding, unpredictable, and bigger than any one person. And he was part of it. There is pride in his voice when he talks about it, not because it was easy, but because it wasn’t. Because he helped build something that will stand long after he is gone.

The union also gave him something he never expected: a voice. And he used it. He told Charlie Tanabe directly that he believed in change, that change was good, and that the union could do better for its workers. He understood the power Local 1186 had to create positive change, and he wanted to be part of that effort. That mattered to him more than anything.

Today, Thomas stands as a reminder of what the union is truly built on: workers who show up, put in the time, and believe in something bigger than themselves. He walked into 1186 looking for a job. He stayed because he found a family. And he continues because he believes in making things better for the next worker who walks through those doors the way he once did.