CINCINNATI, OH - With suicide rates rising among electrical contractors, an amazing squad of superheroes without capes will bring HOPE (Hold On, Possibilities Exist) to American Line Builders in Cincinnati later this week.
On Thursday, Aug. 13 and Friday, Aug. 14, Tom Murphy, Sgt. Rick Yarosh and Chad Althiser, all from Sweethearts & Heroes, will be at the American Line Builders (ALB) Human Connection Summit. ALB is a chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) that represents outside line electrical contractors.
Sweethearts & Heroes’ upcoming work in Cincinnati is part of the organization’s fast-growing mental health support system for electrical workers: The 5th Wire Program (now in partnership with Buckingham Manufacturing, Binghamton, NY).
For more than 17 years, Sweethearts & Heroes — “The World’s #1 Youth Leadership Team” — has presented what Murphy calls “‘the ‘stop, drop and roll’ of bullying” to more than 2.6 million students in school districts from New England to Hawaii and north into Canada. Sweethearts & Heroes also tailors its presentations and professional development workshops for businesses, non-profits and civic groups.
“We go where we’re needed,” Murphy says. “That’s what heroes do.
” Sweethearts & Heroes launched The 5th Wire in 2024, after Northline Utilities (NY) invited Sweethearts & Heroes to bring HOPE to Northline’s 13th Safety and Leadership Summit. That event sparked an invitation for Sweethearts & Heroes to deliver the keynote address at NECA’s 2025 Safety Professionals Conference in Iowa.
Since then, Sweethearts & Heroes has been invited to IBEW union halls, electrical utilities and conferences nationwide to discuss The 5th Wire and to introduce electrical workers to The Magic Of Circle, a popular staple of all Sweethearts & Heroes’ leadership programs. Based on the ancient ritual of communicating in a circle to build empathy and compassion, Sweethearts & Heroes’ Circle program is supercharging electrical workers, because it gives them a place to share openly and freely — without judgment.
While at the ALB summit, Murphy and Yarosh will deliver their powerful keynote presentation to about 60 people on Aug. 13, from 8:45-10:45 a.m. Althiser will join them for Circles from 1-4 p.m. Morning workshops are on the agenda for Aug. 14.
Mike Starner, CUSP, CHST, CLCP, Executive Director, NECA, Outside Line Safety & Industry Engagement said, “The American Line Builders Human Connection Summit, facilitated by Sweethearts & Heroes, will address upstream issues that extend well beyond 'mental health.’ Human connection and human performance are what we’re addressing, which carries over to everything and everyone we touch.”
Murphy said: “The first 17 years of my career were spent in the rail industry, and I’ve found that we share so much in common with the incredible men and women in construction. Above all, safety is our top priority. In both industries, it’s not just a goal — it’s a condition of employment. But here’s a devastating reality — construction workers are five times more likely to die by suicide than from a workplace accident. That statistic is not only baffling, it’s heartbreaking. How has this become the leading cause of death in an industry built on strength and resilience? These men and women are the backbone of America — they keep the lights on, quite literally. And yet, we’re missing a critical piece of the safety conversation. It's time for a fundamental shift in how we define and approach safety. We can no longer limit our thinking to physical injuries alone. Our line workers — our heroes — deserve more.”
American Line Builders proudly serves the outside electrical construction industry in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington D.C. American Line Builders provides its members with an effective agency through which to express their collective voice on issues affecting the outside electrical construction industry. Today, the Chapter represents qualified, reliable, and experienced outside electrical contractors within their region.
NECA is the voice of the $271 billion electrical construction industry that brings light, power and communication technology to buildings and communities across the U.S. NECA contractors are the technical professionals for the most innovative and safest electrical construction in the U.S.
For more on Sweethearts & Heroes, find them here on social media.
Source: Sweetheart & Heroes.
