It was Mickey Salamone’s grandfather who cultivated his interest in knowing how mechanical things worked. Spending his summer vacations at his grandfather’s hog farm in Marengo, Ill., he never ran out of things to take apart, inspect and reassemble.
Mickey has been a diesel technician for 35 years and is retiring after spending the last nine as a Diesel & Heavy Equipment program instructor at Blackhawk.
Put upon this path by his interests, it was an auto teacher in high school who saw something in Mickey and introduced him to the Denver Automotive & Diesel College.
Witnessing students falling through the cracks and walking away from education when he was a college student, Mickey believes Blackhawk has a leg up compared to other schools.
“I believe the students have the opportunity to have their personal ambitions better served by a staff that is able to aid them in their goals due to the smaller size,” he said.
The advancement in technology is the biggest change Mickey has seen in his time in the field. Those advancements have brought on the need for extensive continuing education for instructors as the field advances at an accelerated rate with the introduction of alternative fuels and electric power.
Mickey’s advice to students would be to remove as many distractions as possible to give their undivided attention to the instructors. He believes the opportunity of earning a sizable income is very promising as this field of employment is not garnering high interest in today’s youth.
“If you put your nose to the grindstone in this area of study, the opportunities are endless and rewarding personally and financially,” he said.
While he will miss the daily interaction with other instructors, he hopes to stay connected with them as much as possible.
Mickey hopes to spend plenty of time tinkering in his shop, working on all his vehicles and projects. With six children and 13 grandchildren between them, Mickey and his girlfriend plan to spend more time on visits and their motorcycle trips will be extended and more frequent.
“I will enjoy the fact that every day is Saturday, except Sunday,” he said.
Congratulations on your retirement, Mickey!