When Sgt. Tony Pounds and Sgt. Elizabeth Pounds got married in December 2020, they knew they’d be building a life together around their shared goals and interests. Now, after both graduating the SMART Heroes program in Colorado Springs, they are each set to enter a rewarding career in the sheet metal industry upon their discharge from the Army in October.
The SMART Heroes program was created by the International Training Institute (ITI), The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation (SMART) workers and the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors’ National Association (SMACNA), and since 2017 it has helped more than 500 members of the military transition to civilian life with a jump start in sheet metal apprenticeship.
After meeting in 2019 while on rotation at an air field in Illesheim, Germany, the couple hit it off and started dating. Their relationship grew, even through times when they were stationed five and a half hours away from each other.
They were both interested in hands-on work, which played a part in drawing them together.
“She doesn’t want to get stuck behind a desk, and neither do I,” Anthony Pounds said. “We get along really well when we’re doing projects together.”
They both have relatives in trucking, and Tony Pounds has two uncles and a brother in the trades, working in the electrical and construction fields. When they looked at the career skills programs (CSPs) available, it was Elizabeth Pounds who first gravitated toward SMART Heroes. During her military career she’d spent 11 years in kitchens, cooking and baking, and immediately saw how similar welding was to piping frosting.
“My experience decorating cakes really helped me with the skill,” she said. “Steady hands and pinpoint accuracy are the main thing you need with welding.”
As Anthony saw his wife’s enthusiasm for the SMART Heroes program, he began to have second thoughts about the skills training he had been leaning toward, which involved civilian security. As a mechanic, he’s always worked with his hands, and realized sheet metal might be a better fit for him as well.
“I’m a hands-on guy, I knew I couldn’t just sit there and scan people’s ID cards,” he said. “This opportunity looked like it wouldn’t be boring.”
Over a seven-week period, Elizabeth and Tony Pounds joined other participants in the classroom and shop for 224 hours of accelerated training that gave them skills and knowledge equivalent to their first year of sheet metal apprenticeship. Sessions took place during normal working hours, so they seamlessly fit the program in with their regular duties. In the fall, they plan to join SMART Local 9. Upon discharge from service, SMART Heroes graduates are able to enter any SMART local in the United states and receive second-year apprentice wages and benefits.
“Seeing a husband-and-wife team go through this program and start a new career together is motivational and inspiring,” said Josh Moore, ITI field representative and SMART Heroes specialist. “They are a great duo, and their home local is lucky to get them.”
The couple had high praise for SMART Heroes instructor Greg Daniels. They noticed that, although their cohort was a larger class size than usual, he still found time to give everyone individualized attention. Team spirit was high and this created a collaborative environment for all.
“We were challenged because the material was really new to everyone, but things were laid back and it was easy to learn at your own pace and absorb everything,” Tony Pounds recalled. “Greg did a great job explaining things — he can really break everything down and spell it out.”
Charlotte Rose, the SMART Heroes liaison at Colorado Springs, said Elizabeth and Tony Pounds are the first married couple she’s seen go through the program in Colorado. “Their class slogan was ‘From Serving America to Building America,’” she said. “Elizabeth and Tony Pounds will join the ranks of the sheet metal industry and do just that — one fitting and one duct at a time.”
The SMART Heroes program uses a curriculum created by the ITI, the education arm of the unionized air conditioning and welding industry. The ITI, together with SMART and SMACNA, developed the program in collaboration with Sheet Metal Workers Local 66, SMACNA Western Washington, and Western Washington Sheet Metal training center. The program launched in August 2017 in Washington, with the second location in Colorado Springs offering the same training by August 2019.
Elizabeth and Tony Pounds were pleased that SMART Heroes helps graduates connect with employers as soon as their military service ends, and they have already met a few of the local signatory contractors. As to whether they’ll end up working together soon, Elizabeth Pounds wonders what that might be like.
“We work great together, but I don’t know if any contractors would want to have a married couple working for them — maybe have one of us in the shop and one in the field!” she joked.
The couple plans to stay in the Colorado Springs area and continue raising their family while fulfilling their three-year contract with the Army Reserve.
Additional information on the SMART Heroes program can be found at www.smart-heroes.org or by calling the ITI at 703-739-7200.
