“I challenge anyone to keep up with Jimmy Thomas’ work ethic,” said Wade Jueneman, McElroy’s president and leader of the commercial construction team. “Jimmy’s a can-do guy who gives 100-percent and is always willing to roll up his sleeves and help – no matter what needs to be done. Jimmy’s highly respected by his peers in the office and in the field, and I’ve never talked to a customer who wasn’t thrilled with him.” Jimmy Thomas, McElroy’s commercial project manager and estimating team leader, celebrates 20 years with McElroy’s on August 10, 2025. We’re very pleased to honor Jimmy for his rock-solid determination to find solutions and get things done.

School Days

Jimmy was born in southeast Florida. When he was seven, his family moved to a place in the country near Maple Hill, Kansas, so the kids could attend the Catholic schools in St. Marys. His father opened a sandwich restaurant with an arcade where Jimmy and his siblings worked while growing up. Jimmy wrestled until his sophomore year, and played varsity football as a safety, linebacker and finally fullback. “I enjoyed math and vo-tech classes, but otherwise wasn’t a big fan of school,” Jimmy said. "I studied warehouse management through Washburn Tech, and then earned an associate degree in purchasing from Washburn University.”

McElroy Connections

“In 2005 I was loading trucks at night for a company in Belvue – a dead-end job,” Jimmy said. “I was dating my future wife, Joan Donovan. Her mother, Ruth, is Janet McElroy’s sister. Janet’s husband, Jerry was president of McElroy’s. I gave Jerry a call and asked if there were any positions available. Jerry set me up with the McElroy’s sheet-metal team, and I started working there that August.”

Working with Gail

In the beginning, Jimmy worked in the sheet-metal shop, fabricating ductwork. “It was a good way to get into the trade, but it was repetitive. I wanted more variety,” said Jimmy. “After six months, I got the chance to work in the field with Gail Sage.” Gail is legendary among McElroy’s sheet-metal technicians. Now with more than 40 years on the McElroy’s team, Gail remains one of the hardest working, most skillful field technicians. “I couldn’t have had a better mentor for learning the sheet-metal craft, and developing an excellent work ethic. We’d start at 6:00 a.m., power right through lunch, and have all our work done by 2:30. We had frequent changes of scenery and new challenges every day. It was great!”

Estimator

In 2008, an estimator position opened at McElroy’s. Jimmy discussed it with Dan Beal, who had become McElroy’s president after Jerry McElroy. “Dan gave me the opportunity. I’d get some work done in the field, and then come in to do some estimating,” Jimmy said. “After a few months, I moved to estimating full time.” Jimmy took computer-assisted estimating classes sponsored by Trimble, a provider of software and hardware tools for construction and other industries. “I enjoyed the rush of putting together million-dollar bids on tight deadlines. It was stressful – but a rewarding kind of stress. If we had the low bid, I’d wonder what I might have missed. And if we were high, I’d wonder what I got wrong. I made my share of mistakes – I just tried to learn from them. I kept reminding myself … that’s why they call them estimates!”

Even-Keeled

“Jimmy sets a high bar for how to work each day. He’s very organized and reliably takes on a huge workload without missing things,” said Adam Outlaw, a commercial-construction project engineer who works in the department Jimmy leads. “Jimmy has learned how to handle the challenges in this business. He is even-keeled, never too high or too low. Sudden issues don’t rile him up. He simply takes on a get-it-done attitude and works things out without ever making excuses. No matter what is going on, Jimmy gives proper attention to every project he manages.”

Running Projects

In 2015, Jimmy began managing some of the construction projects that he estimated. In 2017, Wade Jueneman moved up from being a project manager/engineer to overseeing the commercial construction team. That change led to Jimmy taking on some of Wade’s previous tasks – key among them was responsibility for a major client, Stormont Vail Health. “I enjoy going to work each day, and I like staying busy,” Jimmy said. “When you’re in charge of running projects, there is always something to solve. McElroy’s has a great group of people getting things done. Working together, it's fun keeping our customers happy!”

Easy To Talk To

“Jimmy was my direct supervisor on construction projects at Stormont Vail Health for a few years. I enjoyed helping him make things happen,” said Aaron Thompson, McElroy’s VDC/fabrication shop supervisor. “Jimmy is approachable, open-minded and good at working together with the team to solve project challenges. He’s also a superb planner who works diligently to be prepared – both for the expected and the unexpected. Jimmy is always willing to come to job sites, and his sheet metal experience helps him mesh with the field techs. I especially appreciate that Jimmy is a dedicated family man. It’s a pleasure sharing family stories with him.”

Family

Jimmy and Joan live in Rossville and have four kids who are all very active in sports. Sons Reece, age 13, and Gannon, 11, both play basketball and football. Daughters Clare, 8, and Molly, 7, are both into basketball and gymnastics. Joan earned an elementary education degree at Baker University, where she had a golf scholarship. Joan, Jimmy and all four children are, of course, fine golfers! Joan teaches preschoolers in the morning at Silver Lake Elementary. The family enjoys traveling together, and annually takes a trip to Fairfield Bay, Arkansas, with Joan’s parents, siblings and their families.

Hard Work and Honesty

“Not long after I started managing projects, I ordered something wrong. It was a significant mistake. I didn’t know how to explain it to the project owner and I was losing sleep over it,” Jimmy said. Then Jimmy’s father-in-law gave him some simple advice: just tell them the truth. “That’s what I did, and the customer understood. Once I fixed it, they were not only fine with it, they actually trusted me more.” Solutions based on hard work and honesty – that’s what Jimmy Thomas provides. In his 20 years with McElroy’s, Jimmy has consistently sought and embraced growing amounts of responsibility. We at McElroy’s appreciate Jimmy’s work and moral ethics, which are trusted and respected inside and outside our company. We are very pleased and proud of his growth, and look forward to what Jimmy will accomplish in future decades!