Oscar Escobar – McKEON’s VP of Production.

Oscar Escobar has been a member of the McKEON team for 40 years. His primary responsibility is supervising production at McKEON’s plants. Oscar is charged with revising the production work orders and consulting with the engineering department about any issues. He also tracks production deadlines and ensures every department is on the same page and schedule.

Oscar immigrated to the U.S. in 1983. He earned his accounting degree in Honduras but left the country because of the limited job opportunities.

When he approached McKEON’s foreman at the time about a position in the plant, he was initially told there were no openings currently available.

“I told him, ‘I’m looking for a job, and I’m willing to do whatever you have available,’” Oscar said. “He said, ‘I have nothing available right now, but if you want to come back in a couple of weeks, I might have something.’ I turned around, and I was on my way out, and he said, ‘Hey, come back. Do you mind doing the cleaning?’”

Oscar started by cleaning McKEON’s first plant in downtown Brooklyn, but had his sights set on finding a different position within the plant.

“I said, ‘Listen, I really like this – I think I have the potential to learn whatever you do here – give me a chance,’” Oscar said. “He said, ‘I’m going to give you a chance, but don’t let me down.’”

Oscar began working in every different department at the plant, taking over a new job whenever someone was out.

After McKEON hired a new foreman, he quickly looked to Oscar for product help.  When he retired in 1990, he recommended Oscar to replace him.

“I said, ‘I’m not going to be able to do this.’ My English back then wasn’t bad, but it was very broken. He said, ‘You don’t need that. You have the knowledge, you understand the product, you can make it.’”

Today, as McKEON’s longest-tenured team member, he said the most important thing he learned is to “be a good human being.”

“Now I have a better salary, I can spend money … all those things can make you feel like, ‘Ok, I am powerful now,’ no,” Oscar said. “That’s the best thing I learned from this position. I never forgot who I am or where I came from.”

In his free time, Oscar enjoys playing soccer, but as he has gotten older he has started playing golf.

Oscar also enjoys riding his Harley Davidson. “I bought it in February and thought I would ride it for a couple of months. I just wanted a taste,” Oscar said. “(Now) I don’t want to leave it.”