Local 597 had a great week! We hosted the 2026 Illinois State Apprentice Contest. We won all 3 divisions that our apprentices competed in. A huge thank you to our 597 Staff of instructors who did a tremendous job preparing for the event.
Congratulations to all of the winners in each Discipline
Sprinkler Fitter - Sebastian Gaddini / Local 281
Plumber - Jon Walker / Local 23
HVAC - Jack Marsh / Local 597 Contractor F.E. Moran
Welder - Efrain Soto / Local 597 Contractor Rachke Piping & Mechanical
Pipe Fitter - Wyatt Mikkelson / Local 597 Contractor Mechanical Inc.
They will advance to the District 4 Contest that begins on Tuesday, June 9. Local 597 will be hosting the 2026 District 4 Apprentice Contest.
Rylee, our photographer, has already edited her photos and shared the link, which you’ll find below, along with her download instructions. I’ve also included the highlight video link for you to enjoy.
2026 Contest Photo Album
https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/
To download a single photo:
- Open your gallery link
- Click on the photo you want
- Tap or click the download icon (down arrow)
- The image will save to your device
To download the full gallery:
- Open your gallery
- Click the “Download” button (usually at the top)
- Select “Download All”
- The gallery will download as a ZIP file
- Open the ZIP file to access all your images
2026 Contest Highlight Video
https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/