Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories With DeIla Ray

March is Women's History Month – a month set aside to honor women’s contributions to American history. The National Women’s History Alliance, which spearheaded the movement for March being declared National Women’s History Month, has announced the women’s history theme for 2023, “Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories.”

This month, we'd like to celebrate and spotlight DeIla (Dee-i-la) Ray- a female welder who has used her voice and creativity to share stories that educate, inspire and advocate for women in the skilled trades.

As an inspiring advocate for women in trades, DeIla has been recognized by Empowering Women In Industry with honors for her work. In 2020, she was awarded Tradeswoman of the Year. Additionally, DeIla was recently recognized as the 2022 Mentor of the Year and the 2022 Industry Advocacy awards.

"Being a woman in the trades industry, I didn't fit the typical mold of a pipe welder, but I never allowed that to hold me back," said DeIla. "Now, my husband (who complements my work as a pipefitter) and I have begun taking on business of our own!"

A Jane of all Trades! 

Prior to starting her business in 2022, DeIla Ray worked for the last 10 years as a traveling pipe welder. She’s worked across the United States at compressor stations, pre and post-ethanol, food processing, and water treatment and wastewater treatment facilities. She’s earned certifications from the American Welding Society and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Through her knowledge and experiences, DeIla has aimed her passion for welding at the youth in hopes of being able to show students how much pride is in the skilled trades.

Custom UpKeep Awards by DeIla

On top of all her work, Della has generously partnered with UpKeep to help us create our custom awards for MVP winners within our team. Each quarter, the Mission, Vision, and Purpose award is given to one previous leader of the month who most exemplified UpKeep's core values last quarter and had a direct impact on the people in our internal and external community. 

We are so grateful for Della making this moment extra special for our MVPs with her custom-welded trophy. 

"Being appreciated by your company is an amazing feeling, but having them go out of their way to make you a custom trophy and have it not only be the most amazing trophy ever, but you also share the same last name as the awesome female who made this amazing piece of work was the cherry on top! NAILED IT!" - Candice Ray, MVP Award Winner

Celebrating Today, Tomorrow, Always!

Della is an inspiring and motivational woman who continues to help push skilled trades into a better place. Similar to Della, we’ve seen many more women and groups continue to break the barriers and influence the metal fabrication industry in many ways. We hope to continue sharing these stories, experiences, and resources to pass on the gifts of trades while empowering women and younger generations that there are no boundaries to what they can do.