This summer, 28 interns joined O-A-K across our Michigan and Florida offices in Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Traverse City, Naples, and Fort Myers. Each intern was was assigned to active projects and put to work.

What they did

Our interns worked alongside team members both in the field and in the office. They read drawings, tracked punch lists, toured sites, met clients and trade partners, and so much more.

Fridays Together: Learning Every Department

Every Friday, interns from all offices came together in-person and virtually to learn the functions that run O-A-K: Preconstruction, Marketing, Safety, Project Management, Accounting, and Superintendent work. Construction does not happen only in the field. These sessions showed our interns the full machine behind a project: Preconstruction planning the work, project managers driving it forward, superintendents leading the field, safety protecting everyone on the jobsite, accounting keeping it honest, and marketing telling the story.

Ian Miller, a Florida Gulf Coast University student, is proof our interns value their time at O-A-K. Ian first interned with us in 2025 on the FGCU Cohen Student Union renovation, following the project from active construction through closeout. He returned this summer for a new project and a wider view of the business.

"O-A-K's internship program is designed to give students meaningful, real-world experience that simply can't be replicated in a classroom," said Jim Hopper, Florida Division President. "Our interns become valuable members of project teams, participate in problem-solving, interact with clients and trade partners, and gain a deeper understanding of what it takes to successfully deliver complex construction projects."

The pathway is real

Over the past decade, at least 14 former interns have moved into full-time roles with O-A-K.

Brian Filipek interned in 2015 and is now a Project Manager. "The company's reputation initially attracted me to the internship, but it was the people and culture that convinced me to stay," Filipek said. Marco Garcia interned in 2020 and returned in 2024 as a Project Superintendent. Carlos Rapalo interned in 2024 and became an Assistant Project Manager in 2025. Sammuel Presmy worked the Cape Coral Technical College expansion as an intern and joined full-time in May 2026 as an Assistant Project Manager.

Employee-owned since 1891, O-A-K gives interns room to grow and people willing to invest in that growth. Many stay on part-time while finishing their degrees, then join full-time after graduation.

What comes next

To the 2026 intern class: thank you for the work. You strengthened our teams this summer, and we can't wait to build with you again. Interested in an O-A-K internship? Send a message with your resume to camilag@oakmi.com, or learn more on our Careers Page.

30 Years of Building Together at Frederik Meijer Gardens

Some partnerships are measured in projects. Ours with Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park is measured in decades. Owen-Ames-Kimball Co. helped build Frederik Meijer Gardens when it first opened in 1995, and 30 years later, we are still building alongside them. Our latest chapter together is the refresh of the Lena Meijer Children's Garden, a space that has invited curiosity and imaginative play since it first opened in 2004.

"Our history with Frederik Meijer Gardens actually goes back 30 years to when it opened in 1995," said Jeremy Amshey, Chief Operating Officer at O-A-K. "That's something that we're very proud of."

Here is a look at what the project has accomplished so far, and what is still to come.

A Garden Reimagined

After more than 20 years of welcoming children and families, the Children's Garden was ready for new purpose and new energy. The goal was to refresh the space while bringing new and exciting experiences to the garden, and Phase One delivered exactly that.

The centerpiece is Big Girl, a 20-foot-tall interactive bronze sculpture by celebrated artist Tom Otterness. With two slides and room to climb, the piece invites children to make art hands-on and playful. Big Girl also joins a familiar face at the garden. Longtime visitors will recognize Otterness' Mad Mom sculpture nearby, and the artist positioned his new work so that Big Girl now stands in the line of Mad Mom's watchful gaze. The sculpture sits on a soft, synthetic turf that keeps safety front and center.

"If kids fall off here, we want to have a safe, comfortable landing zone," said Dave Fleece, Project Manager at O-A-K.

Indoors, Phase One transformed former back-of-house space into Mary's Ice Cream Parlor, a year-round spot serving Hudsonville ice cream, a dairy-free option, baked goods, and more, with patio seating that looks out onto the pond and the Big Girl sculpture. The addition has proven wildly popular with visitors. "The community's really embraced it," said Pete Crawford, Vice President of Capital Development and Government Affairs at Frederik Meijer Gardens. "So we're excited to have it as a fixture here with the Children's Garden."

Throughout the work, most of the garden stayed open, allowing families to keep visiting while the improvements took shape around them. That kind of coordination, keeping a beloved public space running while construction continues, is at the heart of how we approach every project.

What Comes Next

The project was originally planned in three phases, but the team made the decision to complete the final two phases in a single construction season. The remaining scope is less about newly reimagined spaces and more about refresh, maintenance, and upkeep, the work that keeps a garden thriving for the next generation of visitors. That work includes enhancements to beloved areas like the Treehouse Village, the Rock Quarry, and the Log Cabin.

Built to Last

For 30 years, we have been proud to help Frederik Meijer Gardens create spaces that bring people together. From the day the gates first opened in 1995 to the newest additions in the Lena Meijer Children's Garden, this is a partnership rooted in shared purpose and a shared community. We look forward to what we will build together next.

Video Credit Taproot Pictures

Photo Credit Ashley Avila

We are proud to announce that Owen-Ames-Kimball Co. (O-A-K) is opening its first office in the greater Lansing market, marking another step in our thoughtful growth across Michigan.

We have signed a lease on new office space at 1595 W. Lake Lansing Road in East Lansing, and plan to formally open the location at the end of summer. O-A-K is headquartered in downtown Grand Rapids, with additional offices in Caledonia, Kalamazoo, and Traverse City, Michigan, as well as Naples and Fort Myers, Florida, and Castle Rock, Colorado. We employ 250 people across all of our locations and recorded $531 million in total revenue in 2025, according to Crain's Grand Rapids Business.

Our success has always been rooted in the expertise, judgment, relationships, and commitment of our people. We have been building in Michigan for 135 years, and that history reflects, more than anything, the strength of the people and partnerships behind every project we take on.

"Most of our clients like to have somebody local," said Frank Stanek, PE, President and CEO of O-A-K. "Working in the community, living in the community, and having offices in the community was really essential for us. Finding the right person to start up that office was also a key essential."

Expanding into Central Michigan is a natural next step. Clients O-A-K has worked with for years are active in the region, employees already live there, and trade partner and community relationships are already in place. Opening an office in East Lansing lets O-A-K deepen those relationships and gives partners the experience of working with O-A-K people who are members of their own community.

O-A-K will continue its focus on K-12, higher education, healthcare, government, and aviation clients as it grows in the greater Lansing area.

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The Right Person to Lead the Way

O-A-K recently named Tom Shanley to the newly created role of Director of Central Michigan Operations, where he will lead the East Lansing office. Shanley has spent most of his construction career working in the central and eastern Michigan regions, with experience at The Christman Co. and MIG Construction, and most recently as an owner's representative at Kramer Management Group.

Shanley is in the process of hiring a small East Lansing based staff of three to five people, who are expected to be working out of the office by the end of the year.

"We'll be continually growing our team as we go," Shanley said. "A lot of our field staff work out of mobile trailers and those types of things, but we want to be able to have touch down spaces to bring our teams in to talk, do safety trainings, and collaborative type things."

The office sits immediately east of U.S. 127, giving the team easy access to Shiawassee, Genesee, Livingston, Jackson, and Clinton counties.

"We feel pretty strongly that we can definitely help in this area," Shanley said. "The model that we have, it travels well, but we need that presence."

Meet Tom Shanley

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Built on Partnership

What sets O-A-K apart is the ability to advocate for the client, from the earliest stages of Preconstruction through the final days of a project. The team brings cost certainty and operational planning to complex, technically demanding work, giving partners the tools they need to make informed decisions at every stage. That approach does not change when O-A-K enters a new market. It travels with us.

As a 100 percent employee owned firm, O-A-K's people have a personal stake in every outcome. That is not a slogan, it changes how we work. When team members live in the communities they serve, that commitment deepens, and it shows up in every client relationship, every trade partner conversation, and every project delivered together. Guided by partnership, we are determined to build the best experience.

Become our Trade Partner

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Second Stop on a Bigger Map

East Lansing marks O-A-K's second recent investment outside of its home base in Grand Rapids. The company is also building a new office in Kalamazoo, at property it purchased last year in Western Michigan University's Business, Technology and Research Park. The 8,700 sf office is set to break ground this fall and open in early summer 2027.

Our Michigan Locations

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Read the story on Crain's Grand Rapids Business