He says his masonry instructor has been his greatest influence. In turn, his instructor refers to him as "the best student I've had in my eight years of teaching masonry."

"Codey Rogers is from a working family, and he has a strong work ethic," says masonry instructor Michael Beville of the Bradford-Union Area Career Technical Center in Starke, Fla. "Codey has developed a fondness for masonry and loves to work outside. It's a great combination."

Rodgers works for his father's company, Mike & Sons, Inc. of Lake City, Fla. He operates heavy equipment in their contract work restoring and maintaining state parks and managing the water resources of the Suwanee River.

At school, Rodgers is an active FFA member and president of his SkillsUSA chapter. A self-described "outdoors guy," Rodgers enjoys hunting, fishing and "muddin'."

In June 2008, Rodgers participated in the national masonry contest, held in conjunction with the 44th Annual SkillsUSA Leadership Conference in Kansas City, Mo. He's been working hard in hopes of returning to the contest this June following his senior year of high school.

"I've been laying all the brick I can. Recently I volunteered to do a job at a high school in Jacksonville (Fla.) that was organized by Mr. Al Herndon of the Florida Masonry Apprentice and Education Foundation. Over the course of a couple of weekends, we built a brick backstop for a softball field. I worked mostly on the veneer," says Rodgers. "More recently, I participated in another SkillsUSA regional competition and qualified for the Florida state level competition for the third time. I hope to get back to Kansas City (for the national contest) this summer."

Rogers' instructor thinks he has a good chance to do that. "Codey is driven to succeed. He works hard. He's an inspiration to his fellow students," says Beville. "His physical skills, combined with his ability to learn the technical aspects are superior and demonstrate exactly what will help our industry in the future."

"Codey is in a great position right now," says Beville. "He has two major contractors in the area competing to employ him as soon as he graduates this June."