USSK charity activities culminate in wishing tree Christmas concert
Last Friday, December 12, Košice State Theater was the venue for the Wishing Tree Christmas charity concert, which was the culmination of U. S. Steel Košice’s charity activity in 2014. The Wishing Tree project, organized under the sponsorship of USSK President’s wife Kathleen Babcoke, has brought feelings of joy and belonging as well as new, unforgettable experiences during the course of this year to children from the foster homes in Sečovce and Nižná Kamenica and the families of colleagues who have been stricken with misfortune. The concert included announcement of the results of this year’s voluntary fund-raising by the steelmakers, initiated by Company management with the aim of helping the University Children’s Hospital in Košice to acquire a top-quality ultrasound machine enabling sick children to be rapidly diagnosed and subsequently better treated. The results of the fund-raising were announced by U. S. Steel Košice President George F. Babcoke with the words: &Quot;I am exceptionally proud of the thousands of employees of our Company who realize how important our children’s health is, and who joined in the end-of-year fund-raising for the ultrasound equipment achieving a record result. As in the past, this year too the employees are joined by the Company and the U. S. Steel Košice Foundation, so our financial support has been trebled and together we can buy the University Children’s Hospital a state-of-the-art sonograph machine worth 111 868 euros.&Quot; During the concert the Company also announced further financial support for two foster homes, two halfway houses, the children’s hospital and suffering families, amounting to a total of 150 878 euros.
Awards for best projects and farewell to a colleaguee of many years
The end-of-year internal communication meeting of USSK Vice President Engineering Activities and Innovation Michael A. Fedorenko on December 10 involving employees of the relevant departments was also attended by two representatives from Pittsburgh, Senior Vice President Technology David L. Britten and canning material consultant Danny P. Cerrone, who were visiting Košice as part of their business trip to Europe. At this meeting they also acknowledged the section’s best projects in 2014, and said farewell to USSE Research and Development Director for Centers of Excellence Jozef Sasarák. This collegue of many years’ standing, who has worked at the steelworks since 1978, is taking retirement at the end of this year. His name is linked with many technical and technological solutions as well as innovation proposals. Recently for example he was involved in a project for the Fairfield operation in the USA, where he planned the reconstruction of the trimming shears for the pickling line.
Young people to join steelmakers
Ten successful final-grade students at the Košice-Šaca Metallurgy Vocational School have gained the opportunity thanks to their personal effort and competence and their specialist skills, so long as they maintain their achievement, to reinforce the ranks of the Košice steelmakers after their graduation exams next year. On December 5 an agreement for a future contract with U. S. Steel Košice was signed on school premises by future electrotechnical mechanics, metal-working and welding machine and equipment programmers, and machine and equipment mechanics. Today, December 17, a similar agreement with USSK will also be signed by five selected final-grade students intending to become electrotechnical mechanics specializing in high-current technology and tagging and securing equipment at the Rail Transport Vocational School in Košice.
