Finding My Path: How a Water Career Changed My Future

03/06/25 07:15:am

I pumped gas at a gas station in my small hometown for my first job back when an attendant pumped gas for the customer. I also washed windows and checked the fluid levels in cars. I was 16 years old.

I moved on to working as a laborer at a moving company, bartending at night during college, and working for the Illinois State Water Survey during college summers. While working at the Water Survey, I realized that I enjoyed learning about how water impacted me every day and how necessary clean water is to our existence. It was not until this last job that I found my future in a water career.

As I look back, I see how I bounced around, unsure where I would land, unknowing what I wanted in a career, and unsure about where I would settle. I am fortunate; I found a career in water that I love.

I bring this up because the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) recently completed the new Water Career Pathways. Career pathways provide a road map that shows the entry, technical, and professional jobs related to different roles.

This is an opportunity for people throughout our region to try water as a career with professionals available to guide you. In the water sector, you can work in a laboratory, collect water samples, be a surveyor, or work at a water reclamation facility.

The opportunities are vast if you are willing to work hard and learn. A water career navigator will help to bring many resources to align you with your water career. You can use this to take control of your future.

So, if you know anyone who might be looking for a new career, please send this note to them. They might find the same connection with water that I have found, good hardworking people who have a passion for helping others.

Kevin L. Shafer Signature

Kevin L. Shafer, P.E.
Executive Director - Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District

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