RTM Masonry

Victoria's Trusted Masons

RTM Masonry Continues to Inspire

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In 2015 Nepal was struck by two devastating earthquakes. The earthquakes killed 9,000 people and destroyed over 900,000 homes. Many schools were either destroyed or severely damaged. Rebuilding the schools was a challenge, particularly in the rural areas where government help is limited. RTM Masonry, Victoria’s leading masonry contractor, strongly believes in supporting the community and has done an incredible job helping to bring schools in Nepal back into working condition.

Rob Tournour, president of RTM Masonry, co-founded Another Brick in Nepal (ABIN) to help rebuild the schools in rural parts of Nepal that were damaged by the earthquakes. While reading the newspaper in a coffee shop, Rob, who is no stranger to volunteering, spotted a two-page photo about the devastation in Nepal. Having already helped in the building of a school for impoverished girls in Honduras in 2005, Rob decided that he needed to do something for Nepal. Eventually, he set up ABIN along with his friend Randy Jones and they made their first of many trips to Nepal in October 2015.

In 2017, ABIN funded the rebuilding of an elementary school in the village of Aapchaur. By using locally sourced brick and labor, money raised went back into the local economy, thus further helping the rebuilding process. Another school, the Yagyamati Secondary School in Kathmandu, received funding from ABIN to replace the furniture in two classrooms after government funding ran out. ABIN is currently helping rebuild the Sharada Secondary School in the Sankhuwasava district of Nepal. The school, housed in a two-story building and having over 450 students, was deemed unusable after the earthquakes. After ABIN stepped in, the rebuilding process progressed rapidly. ABIN has been organizing several events like a silent auction and a trail run in Victoria to help raise funds for its rebuilding efforts.

RTM Masonry recently received recognition as Member of the Year at the Vancouver Island Construction Association (VICA) Awards. The award is an acknowledgment from peers for the inspirational work done by RTM Masonry not only locally but also internationally.

The Heat is On. So is Our Work.

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Heat WarningsGreater Victoria recently had a period of high temperatures. These high temperatures often came with heat warnings. This extended heat wave affected the speed of completion of our masonry contracts.

Recently on Chek News, this is what one of our masons had to say about working in the heat.

Safety has always been of utmost importance to us, and we treat our employees like family. As the masons work on projects for weeks, heat exhaustion and heat strokes are of concern and can be fatal. Because of this, the masons need to take it slow and stay well-hydrated. Additionally, they take time off in a shaded area to cool off. Despite this heat-induced slowdown, we pride ourselves on providing quality results.

RTM Masonry has many residential, commercial, and community projects in Victoria. If you take a drive through downtown Victoria, you are likely to see one of our projects. Some of our more notable projects include:

  • Patient care tower at Royal Jubilee Hospital
  • Oak Bay Beach Hotel
  • Union condo building in China Town
  • Songhees Wellness Centre on Admirals Road
  • The Empress Hotel

We also support many community projects in Victoria and abroad. Community projects include the work done by HeroWork in renovating charitable organizations.

At RTM Masonry, we are proud to be a family-owned business, supporting the community in which we work.

Supporting Heroes

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RTM Masonry is a long-term supporter of HeroWork. HeroWork helps charity organizations in Victoria, BC carry out renovations to their buildings. This renovation, called Radical Renovation, takes a fraction of the time and cost. Here is more on the great work done by these heroes.

Hero Work

The charitable sector in Victoria, BC has a disparity between demand and resources. Due to this disparity, the infrastructure of the charities takes a back seat. Most charities do not have the expertise or the funds to redevelop their buildings. HeroWork steps in to help charities bridge this gap. How does it do it?

HeroWork, itself a charity, partners with many businesses like RTM Masonry Ltd. and puts together community events to help other charities carry out renovations. To carry out successful Radical Renovations, HeroWork believes there are 4 ingredients –

1) Change – a visible and radical change over a short time
2) Coolness – a memorable experience for all participants in the project
3) Connection – give participants a sense of feeling connected with those around them
4) Cohesion – a thorough organization of the project so that all participants are clear on their roles

The work done by HeroWork has benefits of its own. It provides the recipient with a sustainable structure that meets current building codes. Second, refurbished construction helps the charity deliver its services. There is a sense of pride and engagement amongst all the clients, staff, and volunteers who help out.

Starting with a minimal budget of only $ 380, the first renovation project that HeroWork completed was worth $ 25,000. Since then, HeroWork has completed over $ 2.5 M worth of charity rebuilds in Victoria. Projects include the Rainbow Kitchen Project, with which RTM Masonry partnered.

RTM Masonry Ltd. is proud to take a leading role in the various projects of HeroWork, and to support the community.

 

The work of many generations

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Empress Hotel 6As the work at the Empress wound down, the new sign went up, and our site office was removed, alongside the platform and other equipment; we couldn’t help but reflect: this has been such a special job, such an honour.

The Empress is, of course, such a unique symbol of history for Victorians. The present and the passage of time are both vibrantly alive in the grand old building; and in a way, the work we wrapped up was about those same themes – for what else is a restoration than the undoing of time itself?

As if to add to the temporal undercurrent, we discovered that for many of us this job was something of an echo. We had among our files many whose fathers, and even grandfathers had been part of various undertakings on the venerable old building. That was a thrill. It really added an entire other dimension to our work there!

Throughout mankind’s history fathers and sons have often worked at the same workplaces, passing along the trade from generation to generation: we find moving stories of this in the Valley of the Kings outside fabled Thebes of old Egypt, in the walls of Gothic cathedrals of medieval Europe, or in the tombs of ancient Chinese Emperors.  The passage of time, the transition from one generation to the next – the unavoidable essence of life itself, seemed somehow assuaged by the transmission of knowledge and role from father to son and with it the illusion of permanence. Foremost was the teaching of the trades, the noblest of all.

As the times changed so did the tradition. With the industrial revolution, many trades suffered, and most were no longer transferred in the same ritual manner. But the tide of history often returns us to the same place and in the latter part of the twentieth century some of the trades began to flourish in a different way, the knowledge more arcane, and more sophisticated. The trade of the mason in the new world is one such trade because its demands are more specific and the number of really good masons is smaller.

empress-doug-clementWe had some great examples of multiple generations working on the Empress, fathers, and sons, building upon and restoring the work of their grandfathers and fathers so long ago.

Someday, who knows… maybe our grandchildren  – or their children – will restore a wall, a chimney, or something else our hands touched or placed in the grand old Empress – and maybe they’ll think of us then.