Ask Northfield who to call at 2 a.m. when the basement is flooding and you will hear one name. Daniel Okafor graduated in 2010 with a secondhand van, a federation certificate and a reputation for answering his phone. Fifteen years later his firm runs six vans around the clock — and he still answers his phone.
One van and a listing
“My entire marketing budget was the alumni directory,” Daniel says. “One line, correct spelling, honest hours. The first winter, burst pipes paid for the second van.” He hired his first employee — a 2013 graduate — from the forum jobs board, and every engineer since has come the same way.
Sons, daughters, everyone
The “Sons” in the firm name now includes Daniel's daughter Amara, a 2023 graduate currently finishing her own apprenticeship at the bench he once occupied. “She solders cleaner than I did at her age,” he admits. “Do not print that.”
