Lorenzo Miles

After graduating from high school, Lorenzo enrolled in a community college with the intention of joining the surgical technician program. He completed his prerequisite courses successfully. However, while waiting for the program to start, Lorenzo needed to find employment. He found work at a nonunion production shop. When his supervisor decided to go back into the union, he helped Lorenzo secure a position with a sheet metal contractor. After discovering that a union sheet metal worker’s salary exceeded that of a surgical technician, combined with his newfound enjoyment of fabrication, Lorenzo decided to join Local 206 and started the sheet metal apprenticeship in 1998, earning his journey card in 2003.

Lorenzo specialized in architectural sheet metal. Throughout his career, he worked for San Diego Sheet Metal Works and California Sheet Metal as a journey-level worker and job captain. In 2020, an opportunity arose for the position of training director for the Sheet Metal JATC San Diego. Lorenzo applied, confident his experience managing jobs and overseeing a youth sports league aligned well with the role’s requirements, which included recruiting, budgeting, training, and proficiency in Microsoft Office programs. He was enthusiastic about sharing his trade knowledge with others, particularly those seeking viable alternatives to college for earning a decent living. He often said, “One cannot know what they do not know. I never anticipated how much I would enjoy using my hands to build things.”

The most notable project of Lorenzo’s career was the UTC Tower Palisade. The project stood out due to its diverse architectural elements and it won the 2020 CAL SMACNA Tom Guilfoy Memorial Craftsmanship Award.

In his spare time, Lorenzo likes to fish, and is a self-proclaimed soccer fanatic both as a spectator and as a coach.