“At the end of the day, it’s about who is going to take care of you.”

Thomas has always been up for a challenge. He holds many titles; single dad, retired U.S. Marine, oil and gas completions consultant and woodworking business owner. What do his various roles have in common? Discipline, hard work, and commitment – just to name a few.

From a young age, Thomas had two strong male role models in his life: his step-father and grandfather. His step-father, who served in the Air Force, was deployed to Iraq following 9/11. His grandfather was a master plumber and a preacher. Thomas says they taught him the importance of faith, hard work, and good ol’ fashion grit. Through his upbringing he decided the skilled trades would be his calling.

“I work better with my hands and want to see results that I produce,” Thomas says. “I enjoy doing the stuff that people don’t want to do because they think they're too good to do the hard work.”

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This mentality has taken Thomas far in the oil & gas industry. His first job was working the nightshift in facility maintenance. From there he quickly progressed from cleaning floors and loading chemicals to night shift supervisor. But Thomas didn’t stop there. Realizing the opportunities the field offered, he got his CDL license to level up.

Unfortunately, COVID-19 forced Thomas out of the oil and gas field temporarily. Having a young daughter to provide for, he turned his woodworking hobby into a small business. Even though the market has recovered, Thomas still finds time to make his wooden flags between hitches.

Thomas got back into oil and gas after nailing an interview with Workrise. Having heard of Workrise through friends in the field, he made the decision to give the company a shot.

Looking back, Thomas believes he made the right decision.

One night in September 2021, Thomas was fast asleep in his job-site trailer when the West Texas winds picked up. Before he knew it, a tornado had swept through his home. Thomas needed emergency care and quickly went to the local hospital.

After several tests and CT Scans, doctors determined his injuries were minor –  lacerations and bruising. Hardworking Thomas was thankful for the good news, and immediately began planning his return to the field.

“I wanted to go back to work the next day because I didn’t want to mess up the schedule,” Thomas said. “I was just in my first week on the job and I remember just asking for one day off to recover so I could finish out my rotation.”

Thomas understands the hustle and bustle of the industry and working with clients. Being in the oil & gas field for nearly 15 years, he knows how important daily labor is. This natural disaster wasn’t going to get in the way of the work that needed to be done. So when Workrise offered him paid time off to recover from the accident, he was shocked.

"This was my first week [on that job]. Workrise paid for the 2nd week while I was off,” shared Thomas.

With the additional paid week off from the job, Thomas was not only in a better mental and physical space, he was ready to work.

About a month after the incident, Thomas had mostly healed and was finally getting back to normal. That’s when the hospital bills started to show up. Knowing Thomas was overwhelmed, Workrise offered to step in and help.

“I didn’t get any pushback from Workrise and it was a massive effort on their end to get it rectified.”

It’s a gesture Thomas says he won’t soon forget. Now, he can focus on what matters most - hard work, providing for his daughter, and growing his woodworking business.

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