I began an apprenticeship as a cabinet maker in NYC in 1979 or '80. I worked helping an installer named Alfred Urban, who was from Austria. He was called "a merchant of speed" by some of the other mechanics (that's the term all the cabinet makers called each other) In some ways it was a backhanded compliment, meaning he was fast, but not as good as some of the other guys who were more "artistic". Alfred was amazingly skilled. I was blessed to have been his helper. He treated me great. When someone compliments me now, I tell them I was lucky to have been taught by the best of the best...
My dad was the foreman of the finishing department, so some of the mechanics definately went out of their way to encourage me. I had met many of them before working side jobs with my dad as a teenager on the weekends. My first week, Paul came up to me and said, "You need to learn to steal!" and after I responded, "What????" he said , "steal with your eyes!" He meant that I needed to pay attention, watch, and learn all the tricks, which I did.
By age 25 I was an inside guy at a different union company, meaning I worked in the shop as a "benchman". I eventually worked for their prototype group making "one of a kinds" with a lead man who just turned the pages of the blueprints all day long and another benchman with whom I split the work on these prototypes.
A nice man who worked maintenance there had a heart attack one day right near my bench area, I did CPR on him and kept him alive until the paramedics relieved me and got him to the hospital. He lived for 2 weeks and then died in the hospital of a massive heart attack. I decided to leave the union and go out on my own... which had completely different challenges... but I had my skills thanks to my apprenticeship and the mechanics who taught me...