Ora Nation left Oglethorpe County at age 18 to find a job in Atlanta and “strike it rich.”
There, he began his first job at Rainwater Construction as a steel erector, assembling the framework of steel buildings. Nation was excited to receive a wage of 75 cents an hour, a fair rate in 1957.
“Gas was 20 cents a gallon and Elvis Presley was still the king,” Nation said.
Now, 67 years later, Nation still works at Rainwater Construction, celebrating his latest anniversary at the company in March.
“It was the first job I had, and the only one,” Nation said. “Before that, I picked cotton for my pop.”
While Nation, who is 85, lives in Roswell, “Oglethorpe County is home” for him, he said.
“I was born and raised down on Crawford Smithonia Road, next to (Welcome Avenue Congregational Holiness Church),” Nation said. “I knew a lot of families buried there at that church.”
But he wasn’t able to learn about construction until he left home.
“It's been a journey, I’m here to tell you,” Nation said. “The first day on the job, I didn’t know nothing about anything hardly. I was born on a 212-acre farm and never got out of that area but a time or two in my life.”
Steven Hudgins, president of Rainwater Construction, said Nation’s starting job was a “bottom-layer, entry-level” role. However, Nation has built an impressive career since those early days.
“I started out as just one person in a crew,” Nation said. “Before my first year was out, I had my own steel erection crew and ran it for about over 15 years. Then I got into management and managed steel erection and concrete crews.”
Now, Nation works in Rainwater Construction’s sales department as a building consultant. He estimates he began working in the department 35 years ago when he asked Cecil Rainwater, the founder of the company, to change career paths.
“Cecil had a saying, and we still honor that saying and practice that saying today, which is ‘At Rainwater Construction, you can be anything that you want to be,’” Hudgins said. “So if you really think about it, he’s had about two 30-year careers, and extremely successful 30-year careers, in two different sides of construction.”
Hudgins said Nation is “the best salesman at Rainwater Construction” due to the extensive knowledge he gained while working in the field.
“One of his customers we’ve built more than 85 buildings for,” Hudgins said. “We’re talking about buildings, you know, we’re not talking about 85 printers, right? So just think about the value of this service that he had had to provide for this customer to come back 84 times.”
Hudgins often consults Nation on difficult projects and aspires to Nation’s sense of calm, which he maintains even when “everybody’s hair is on fire” during stressful projects.
Hudgins said he believes Nation learned to stay calm under pressure through his race car driving career from 1969-75. He pursued this interest while continuing work at Rainwater Construction, racing at the Peach Bowl Speedway and Dixie Speedway, Nation said.
Last fall, Butler Manufacturing, a premier metal building company, recognized Nation’s successful ways of working and dedicated career.
“Butler presented the first and only Butler Lifetime Achievement Award,” Hudgins said. “They've been around for about 120 years, and they've only given it to one person so far. So I think that's a big testament of what the industry thinks of Ora Nation.”
Nation’s family also thinks highly of his accomplishments.
“He may not be a hero, but his perseverance and working with that one company in that industry for so long, to me, he is a man of steel,” said William Nation, Nation’s son who lives in Devil’s Pond.
William Nation said his father’s work ethic and loyalty were a great example for him and his siblings. Now, he serves as a positive influence for other members of the Nation family, many of whom live in Oglethorpe County.
“He's got nieces and nephews and grand nieces and nephews, and probably grand grand nieces and nephews, in the county,” William Nation said. “It’s quite a family reunion.”
Lisa Nation, William Nation’s wife, estimates that there are four generations of Nations in the county, spanning “age 90 down to babies.”
William Nation said his father has instilled a “sense of hard work” in those who know him.
“We know what it is to put in a day's work,” he said.
Only a few months ago, Nation decided to take Fridays off and work four days a week, Hudgins said.
“I feel like I still make some difference in the world,” Nation said. “I love the people I work with, and I love what I do. So why should I retire?”