Castle Contracting

This Memorial Day, we take a moment to recognize the heroes who laid down their lives in service to our country. As we build our community for a stronger tomorrow, we remember the selfless men and women whose bravery and dedication inspire us to create a better future for all.

Join us in honoring their memory and the liberty we hold dear. ❤️🤍💙

Our safety culture is the cornerstone for all Castle operations and projects. May 4–8, we’re taking part in Construction Safety Week 2026, using that time to reinforce the top priority of sending everyone home safe, every day.

The annual theme, All in Together, comes to life through three essential actions: Recognize, Respond and Respect. These pillars reflect how we show up for one another by staying aware, acting when we see something unsafe, and treating every person on our jobsites with care.

Throughout the week, we, alongside our partners and teams that strengthen our shared commitment to safety, will be engaging in activities, including:
🛠 Daily toolbox talks focused on real-world safety practices
🚧 Demonstrations highlighting the latest safety innovations
🎉 Team-building moments that reinforce our “Pride in Safety” culture

We hope you’ll join us, because building safely and with pride takes everyone.

Public libraries create welcoming spaces for neighbors to gather, explore and learn. 📚🏛️

This , we’re celebrating that mission to develop and uphold vital community hubs. Let's also take a moment to shout out recent opening of the new and the Castle Omaha project team that provided essential site preparation services that set a solid base for the library's main structure and the adjacent parking garage.

What is your favorite thing about your local library? Feel free to share it with us in the comments. 🗨️

To learn more about Castle's civil scope, please visit: https://ow.ly/1YGq50YOxeM

We saved one of the best moments from our Craft Appreciation Party for last welcoming a new class into the 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁 𝗛𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗲.

Big congrats to this year’s inductees:
𝗝𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗺𝘆 𝗦𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗵 – Safety Shield Award
𝗞𝗲𝗻 𝗞𝗲𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 – Newcomer of the Year
𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿 – Desirable Award
𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗼𝗻 – Tough Projects Award
𝗥𝗼𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗼𝗻𝗲 – Jim Conley Award
𝗗𝗮𝗻 𝗡𝗼𝗲𝗹𝗸𝗲𝗿 – Chis Joseph Award (Craftsperson of the Year)

Thank you for showing up, looking out for your crews and tackling the tough work with pride.

Last Saturday, we got to do one of our favorite things—hang out together and celebrate the craft professionals who keep Castle moving. 🎉

𝟱 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲
Bryan Keller, Grant Hopkins, Kelly Shelby, Kolby Lueken, Ricky Pennington, Thomas Haberland

𝟭𝟬 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲
Jake DeRousse, Jeremy Louvier

𝟮𝟬 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲
Aaron Rende, David Bowen, Richard Leonhardt

𝟮𝟱 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲
Ray Cureton

Thanks for the early mornings, long days and pride you bring to every jobsite. Your partnership is truly respected and cherished. 💪

Stay tuned… a separate post is coming to shout out this year’s Craft Hall of Fame inductees. 👀

𝐃𝐨𝐳𝐞𝐫𝐬! 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐞 𝐛𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐳𝐞𝐫𝐬!?

It’s hard to picture the civil construction industry without bulldozers. But, thanks to farmer James Cummings and draftsperson J. Earl McCleod, we don’t have to. 😮‍💨 Their 1923 design for an attachable scraper blade for the front of a tractor and their 1925 patent for a front-mounted blade helped pave the way for early versions of the modern bulldozer and reshaped the future of earthwork.

We can’t talk about dozers without shouting out the Castle’s St. Louis Shop & Yard mechanics and their iconic “Dirt Vader” dozer rebuild and custom paint project! 🚜🛠️ ✨

𝘋𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘋𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘴: 𝘊𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘤𝘓𝘦𝘰𝘥 1925 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 “𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘭𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥” 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳.

HEAVY EQUIPMENT SHOWDOWN �

Civil construction work can involve some heavy lifting and serious hauling. From dozers to excavators, every piece of heavy equipment on a Castle job is backed by our warehouse team and expert technicians — ensuring the right tools are on your site and running when you need them.

See how we approach equipment procurement, maintenance and fleet control � https://ow.ly/5G3K50Y1lfw

What piece of yellow iron do you think is best to have on a project site? � Let us know in the comments!

Most people take the week off before their wedding, but Jake VanBooven embarked on a new civil construction career instead. “My day one at Castle was on Monday, September 18, 2012, and that Friday I got married to my wife, Abigail,” he laughs.

Building on his early days as a union carpenter, Jake learned the trenchless technique of directional boring and has developed into a skilled general foreman capable of navigating large-scale civil projects.

When he's not running jobsites, Jake's probably running cattle—150 head on a farm he co-manages with his dad near Rhineland, Missouri.

Get to know more about Jake:
https://www.digcastle.com/insights/jake-vanbooven-is-built-for-the-daily-grind