September Member of the Month

Ambrose Davis — Mr. “I NEED A JOB!”

If you have been around Local 159 for any length of time, you know Ambrose Davis.

Actually, you probably really know Ambrose because you have heard him say the same thing more than once:

“I NEED A JOB!”

But there is something else everyone knows about Ambrose: he shows up.

Trail cleanup? Ambrose is there.

City Council? Ambrose is there.

Coffee shop action? Picket line? Parade? Union meeting? Vote? Party? Community event?

You name it, and chances are Ambrose Davis was there.

Our International Union’s campaign is built around the words One Union. One Family. One Fight. Across the country, the IUPAT is working to empower its members to become more involved in their union, their workplaces, and their communities.

Here in Local 159, we already have a shining example of what that kind of union member looks like.

His name is Ambrose Davis.

More Than Four Decades in the Trade

Ambrose got into the trades before many of the people working alongside him today were even born.

He began drywall finishing in New York in 1980, back when finishers regularly worked with tools like banjos and methods that many of today’s younger workers have never seen.

Now, at the very young age of 69, Ambrose still spends his days working alongside—and often outworking—people one-third his age.

His foreman describes him simply: Ambrose works hard all day. He doesn’t slow down.

But what makes Ambrose especially valuable on a crew isn’t only what he can do himself. It is what he is willing to teach someone else.

After more than four decades in the trade, Ambrose can run the tools, but he especially enjoys handwork, details, and touch-up—the kind of work where years of experience really show. Today, while working at the Venetian, he is also helping mentor apprentices and passing along knowledge that can only come from a lifetime in the trade.

A Career That Has Taken Him to Iconic Jobs

Ambrose’s career has put him on some remarkable projects.

While working in New York, he worked at the World Trade Center, including work around the observation deck, in 2000—just one year before the September 11 attacks destroyed the Twin Towers.

After eventually making his way to Las Vegas, the list of recognizable projects continued.

Fontainebleau. The Sphere. MGM Grand. The Venetian.

There aren’t many people who can look at skylines on opposite sides of the country and point to landmarks that they personally helped build.

Ambrose can.

Sometimes the Most Important Lessons Aren’t About the Trade

Ambrose’s story hasn’t always been an easy one, and he doesn’t pretend that it has.

There were periods in his life when he struggled with staying loyal to the union, substance use, and choices that led him into the criminal justice system. Those experiences cost him time, relationships, and opportunities.

But they also gave Ambrose something valuable to share with younger members today: perspective.

He knows what it means to look back and wish you had done some things differently.

That is why Ambrose talks about the importance of getting vested while you’re young, staying loyal to your union, working steadily, and building your pension and retirement benefits while you have the years in front of you.

He also knows firsthand the value of our health benefits and the Employee Assistance Program.

Those resources became part of Ambrose’s journey toward sobriety and rebuilding his life. Most importantly, that journey helped him restore his relationship with his daughter, Giana.

Today, Ambrose is incredibly proud of her. Giana works as a psychotherapist at a hospital in Baltimore, helping people dealing with mental health and substance-use challenges. Father and daughter talk at least once a week, helping Ambrose stay grounded while continuing to strengthen a relationship that means the world to him.

His experiences have also given him another skill that can’t be learned from a textbook.

When someone else is struggling, Ambrose understands.

He stays active in his church and AA, his union, and his community because he knows how good it feels to help somebody else.

Humble Enough to Start Again

Ambrose’s career also teaches another lesson about humility.

After journeying out, Ambrose took what you might call a long leave of absence from the trade.

When he eventually returned, he was disappointed to learn that he would have to come back through the apprenticeship program.

Think about that for a moment.

Imagine having decades of experience, knowing your trade, and then being told you have to wear the title of apprentice again.

That can be a serious blow to someone’s pride.

Some people wouldn’t do it.

Ambrose did.

He humbled himself, accepted where he was, and went back to work.

Today, he recognizes that decision has helped him stay employed and continue moving forward. Contractors receive tremendous value from having someone with Ambrose’s experience on a crew, especially because he doesn’t keep that knowledge to himself. He shares it with the younger apprentices working beside him.

Ambrose has been around long enough to understand something important:

The title doesn’t make the craftsman. The work does.

“Believe in Yourself.”

Ask Ambrose what advice he would give a younger member and his message is simple:

Believe in yourself. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Keep your head up.

Those aren’t just words coming from Ambrose.

He has lived them. He has experienced success and setbacks. He has made mistakes and rebuilt. He has been a journeyman and started over as an apprentice. He has struggled and recovered. He has lost time and then learned just how valuable that time really is.

And through all of it, he kept moving forward.

When Ambrose talks about High Performance, High Value, he talks about quality. He talks about taking pride in your work, keeping your head up, and being proud of what you leave behind at the end of the day.

That’s exactly how he approaches the trade.

One Union. One Family. One Fight.

When Local 159 chooses a Member of the Month, we look for more than someone who can do the work.

We want someone who performs at the best of their ability on the job and understands that being a union member means something off the job, too.

Ambrose Davis represents both.

At 69 years old, after more than four decades in the trade, he still wants steady work. He still wants to prove what he can do. He still wants to teach the next generation. And when his union or his community asks members to show up, you rarely have to wonder whether Ambrose will be there.

He’ll be there.

And there’s a pretty good chance he’ll remind you:

“I NEED A JOB!”

Ambrose is proud to be a member of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, District Council 16, Local 159, and he looks forward to finishing his career with years of steady work, continuing to share what he has learned along the way.

Ambrose, your story reminds us that being an exemplary union member doesn’t mean you’ve had a perfect journey.

It means you learn from that journey.

You show up.

You give back.

You help the next person.

You take pride in your craft.

And you keep moving forward.

Local 159 is proud to recognize Ambrose Davis as our September Member of the Month.

Congratulations, Ambrose.

One Union. One Family. One Fight.