Weatherton Scholarship Awarded to Three Inspiring Students

The American Concrete Pumping Association is proud to present the 2022 recipients of the Bob Weatherton Scholarship: Margaret Schmidt, Leighton Landreth and Lauren Bone. These students embody the leadership and spirit that is integral to the legacy of the late “Big Bob” Weatherton of The Concrete Pump Store in California. Bob served on the ACPA board of directors for more than 40 years and was one of the industry’s most avid champions.

Open to eligible members and their employees and respective families, the Bob Weatherton Scholarship Fund was created for undergraduate, graduate and vocational students in fields related to concrete, concrete pumping, construction and engineering, construction management, and administration and vocational studies related to concrete pumps and trucks. The scholarship award is paid directly to the school to fund tuition, fees, books and/or room and board provided by the institution.

In its fourth year, the scholarship drew highly qualified and diverse candidates. Members of the ACPA Scholarship Committee served as judges, evaluating submissions separately and submitting scores individually to an independent accounting firm to tabulate the results. The three individuals receiving the greatest number of points were selected as the winners.

Margaret Schmidt

A student at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, Margaret Schmidt is taking her sophomore year by storm. She is pursuing a degree in construction management and working toward earning the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Certificate, which according to the university is similar to a minor. Before the fall semester started, she had secured a summer internship with Meade Construction’s Hammond, Indiana, team for a high-speed rail project.

“Margaret is a high-character individual,” says Jason Merchant, a lecturer at Purdue’s School of Construction Management Technology.

“She is a dedicated go-getter, and I could not imagine a more deserving candidate for the ‘Big Bob’ Weatherton Scholarship.”

During her freshman year, Margaret earned OSHA 10-hour certification and Procore certification to master construction project management software. In high school, she earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, which is equivalent to the Boy Scout Eagle Award, and was captain of her college prep school’s varsity lacrosse and rowing teams. Currently, Margaret serves as secretary for the on-campus Women in Construction Management organization and enjoys participating in philanthropic activities with her sorority.

Construction has always been part of Margaret’s life. Her father, the late Albert Schmidt, worked as a general superintendent for several prestigious construction companies in Chicago. Her mother, Joan Andersen Schmidt, is the president of Andersen Concrete Pumping, also based in Chicago.

“I plan to follow in my mother’s footsteps by going into the concrete pumping industry,” she says.

Leighton Landreth

Leighton Landreth is a repeat winner of the Bob Weatherton Scholarship, having first received the award in 2020. The Texas native says she is guided by an entrepreneurial spirit that has led her to study business management. She also attended World of Concrete in 2021 and plans to return to the trade show in 2023.

“I am passionate about working and being innovative, and I’m excited to learn the ins and outs of the concrete industry,” Leighton says.

Leighton became interested in pump trucks at an early age, thanks to her family’s more than 20-year history in the construction industry. During high school, she began working part time in the family’s pump company, Bigfoot Concrete Pumping based in Georgetown, Texas.

“She is a fast learner and not afraid to try new things,” says Amber Klotz, an employee at Landreth Construction and Bigfoot Concrete Pumping. Those “new things” range from learning to drive a Bobcat and other construction equipment to creating improved worksheets for the office.

Leighton attends Angelina College in Lufkin, Texas, on an athletic scholarship. She still works for the family company while also attending classes and playing NJCAA Division 1 softball. She plans to eventually take over the family business.

“I have worked for Bigfoot for almost two years, and I have loved every second of it,” says Leighton. “My goal while navigating my way through this business degree program is to learn as much as possible so I can one day operate a thriving company that serves both its employees and customers.”

Lauren Bone

“I was born to be part of the construction world,” says Lauren Bone, a civil engineering major at University of Colorado at Boulder.

Growing up in Washington State, Lauren’s earliest memories are of sitting on concrete pumps with her grandfather and visiting her father’s workplace where he pointed out the pumps and heavy machinery. As she got older, she developed a love for math and science, which led her to civil engineering.

Now a college sophomore, Lauren was exposed to field work during a summer internship for Shaw Construction in Denver. She worked on the Avalon Bay Governor’s Park project, a 304-unit multifamily building, shadowing and performing the functions of a project engineer.

“Lauren worked long hours and made consistent contributions to the daily workload of the project,” says Curt Quint, senior project engineer at Shaw. “She was never afraid to ask questions and learned a lot about structural concrete. I witnessed tremendous growth in her problem-solving.”

Lauren says she also learned a lot about herself, and what it means to be a woman working in a male-dominated industry. “I felt the need to work harder to be respected by my team and our subcontractors,” she says.

However, seeing Brundage-Bone Concrete Pumping on the job gave her a sense of coming full circle: “Seeing how the company my grandpa [Dale Bone] started impacts my career today — it made me confident that I chose the right path.”

ACPA congratulates these well-deserving young people and wishes them the best of luck on their journeys.

Their futures are bright!