76.7 F
Charlotte Amalie
Friday, March 29, 2024
HomeNewsArchivesHovensa Honors Graduates of Training Program

Hovensa Honors Graduates of Training Program

Oct. 24, 2007 — A recent graduation ceremony in the auditorium at the Hovensa refinery honored 22 St. Croix residents for completing training in basic refining-process operations.
On Oct. 18, Hovensa President and Chief Operating Officer Larry Kupfer presented them with certificates of completion in a ceremony witnessed by a large number of relatives and friends of the graduates and officials of Hovensa, according to a Hovensa news release.
In his remarks, Kupfer informed the guests of the mission, vision and values of the company. He pointed out the mission statement: "To ensure prosperity for the company, employees, community and future generations through the safe, environmentally responsible and reliable production of quality fuels that enrich people's lives." The company exists not only to provide profit for its owners, but to provide prosperity for its employees and the community, he said.
Kupfer told the graduates that in making decisions on the job, they should take only those actions that respect the company's mission, bring Hovensa closer to its vision and are in accordance with the company's values.
The refinery is a safe place to work, Kupfer noted. He pointed out that, based on statistics on employee injuries maintained by the company in accordance with standards set by the U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration, the refinery is a safer place to work than many other places on the island. It is the 11th-largest refinery in the world and the third largest in the United States.
"If Hovensa were a publicly owned company, it would be the 212th-largest company in the U.S. based on annual revenues," Kupfer said.
His secrets to success — based on more than 20 years in business — have been to maintain a "positive, can-do attitude" and "be a team player," Kupfer said. He urged them to do the same, and urged the family members present to remind the graduates of this whenever they displayed a negative attitude.
Receiving certificates of completion were Kena Aaron, Jason Pennington, Cathy Allen, Jeffery Purcell, Kali Ayala, Luisa E. Quinones, Magdalena S. Charles, Douglas A. Rayne, Jeremy R. Chassagne, Juan Angel Roman-Rondon, Jordan E. Chciuk-Davis, Yamil E. Saldana, Maurice J. Dongar, Khaleb G. Sealey, Daniel Horn, Anthony Stellerine, John James Jaffurs, Theo L. Sutherland, Kyle Malinowski, Jaynae S.R. Williams, Kern L. Monlouis and Harold A. Willocks.
Hovensa Vice President of Human Resources Xavier Boza recognized Kern Monlouis and Maurice Dongar as the valedictorian and salutatorian of the class, respectively. He read a brief biography on each before presenting them an award. Both of the top graduates immigrated to St. Croix from other Caribbean islands: Monlouis from the island of St. Lucia and Dongar from the French island of Martinique. Dongar learned English as a second language while living in Trinidad from 1998 to 1999.
Hovensa's director of Health, Safety and Emergency Service, Mike Dupuis, presented an award to John Jaffurs for giving the best safety presentation to the class during its 13 weeks of training. In his remarks accepting the award, Jaffurs said he has been impressed by the safety consciousness of Hovensa. As a result of the company's emphasis on safety, he said, he personally has become very safety conscious, even when performing chores at home.
Anthony Bhola, the principal instructor for the training program, was presented a plaque by the members of the class as an expression of their appreciation for Bhola's work with the class. In his remarks after accepting the plaque, Bhola said the class was the most educationally diverse group of students he had ever taught. He stated that some had college graduate degrees, some a high school diploma and some were home schooled, which initially made the class a challenging group to teach.
Five recently hired engineering graduates were placed in the class to familiarize themselves with the processing units and with the process operators with whom they would interact in their work. Bhola told the graduates that they were graded every day while they were in the basic refining process operation training program and that they will continue to be graded in the refinery on a daily basis by their coworkers and their supervisors.
"Always shoot for the best grade," he told them.
Anyone interested in becoming a process operator should submit an application to the Hovensa Human Resources Department. All applicants must have at least a high school diploma, or a GED certificate, a V.I. driver's license and be able to work shifts, which rotate weekly, and work overtime as conditions require.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Keeping our community informed is our top priority.
If you have a news tip to share, please call or text us at 340-228-8784.

Support local + independent journalism in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as accessible as we can. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. We know that informed communities are empowered ones. If you appreciate our reporting and want to help make our future more secure, please consider donating.