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Mike is originally from Grand Rapids, Michigan. After high school, he spent two years in Junior College before joining the Navy in 1978. There he got into submarine services and went to electrical school, communications school, and nuclear power school. He spent six years in the navy and soon after started in the civilian world with Comcast. Mike went on to spend twenty-two years at Comcast before joining our team at Jade Communications.  He has been an integral part of the Jade family for almost a decade now and still going strong. His official job title says Purchasing Agent but Mike is much more involved than that as he shares a huge interest and role in the goings on at Jade! Not only does he take care of all of our purchasing needs but he’s also our Safety Manager, he maintains all our company vehicles, deals with logistics and he also runs the warehouse and even oversees job sites. 'Everything I do here is pretty exciting', he says.

“I like visiting the job sites, doing the inspections, making sure all the safety procedures are in place and making sure everyone is safe." - Mike Bechtold, Purchasing Agent at Jade Communications

Mike is very dedicated to his job and the industry he works in. It's a fast-paced industry and he enjoys that there is something different to do almost every day. He especially loves the close-knit culture that he maintains with his co-workers. 'We're a family here at Jade and we look out for each other', he says. Mike also deals with all of our vendors and over the years he has managed to build long-standing, professional relationships with them all, which definitely makes a major difference.

Our values and beliefs form the foundation of who we are. For Mike, responsibility, honesty, and loyalty is what his foundation is built on. Mike's parents - Robert and Jennet have always been his support system. They taught him about the quality of life, and how to be respectful and truthful, lessons he finds himself adapting in everyday life. His mom still lives in Michigan and he remains very close with her...even more so since his Dad passed away. On a lighter note, if you love nature, outdoor activities and a really good barbeque, then Mike is your guy! Flying radio controlled airplanes and drones, biking, swimming, playing volleyball and yes, hiking are all activities he enjoys doing. Mike has traveled to every state except Alaska but it's on his bucket list he says!

Laughter is good medicine and Mike agrees! He prides himself on having a great sense of humor and loves making people laugh. I guess it's safe to say this medicine works because Mike is notably not a “sick day taker”! Most times he is busy, drumming up the works and allowing us to see the bigger picture but if you run into him, grab some of that laughter medicine..it's good for your and he dishes it out freely!