Thomas Stubbs

Job Title: Journeyman Electrician

Company: Acker Electric Company, Inc.

Location: Anniston, Ala.

Age: 30

Years on the Job: 12

Interests: Helping others, coaching his children’s baseball and softball teams, riding four-wheelers, and being in the woods and mountains with his family

Thomas Stubbs began his venture into the trades by studying welding at his local career tech center, which didn’t have an electrical program. One day, he watched a maintenance technician run new circuits and perform electrical work for new equipment at the tech center, and this experience changed his career trajectory.

“Preston Jones noticed my interest in what he was doing, and he gave me a Ugly’s Electrical References book and told me he thought I should pursue further education in this field,” he said.

Born in Anniston, Ala., he was raised in foster care until he was adopted at the age of 13. After graduating from Alexandria High School, he began his electrical training in the electrical technology program at Gadsden State. After a few semesters, he decided to double down on work and on raising his children, and the rest of his education came from on-the-job training.

“I think my training prepared me for my current position at Acker Electric by giving me the knowledge and skills it takes to perform my job at a high level,” he said. “I am learning something new on an everyday basis, and I’m continuing to study week in and week out.”

As a crew foreman, he arrives at the job by 6 a.m. to line out the crew, prepare for upcoming tasks, and gather materials, tools, and lifts for the days and weeks ahead. Over the past 12 years, he said his responsibilities have changed drastically, from performing the labor himself to thinking through and preparing the work that needs to be done.

“My favorite and most challenging parts of my role are having to navigate how to put a job in, and I really enjoy troubleshooting a problem that others say ‘cannot be solved,’” he said. “I think I help on most of these projects by just being a team player and having a next-man-up mentality.”

He hopes to be a business owner one day.

“I have always wanted to own my own business, and I hope in the next 10 years, I can accomplish this feat,” he said. “I plan to reach this goal by working hard and striving to be the best that I can be, and one day just make that leap of faith.”

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