Stories of Our Teamwork
Our people shape our culture. REES is a place where coworkers become friends, mentors cheer your success and leaders listen. We celebrate life’s milestones together. We’ve shared playlists during late-night deadlines and opened our homes to one another over the holidays.
We encourage each other to speak up, try new things and grow. New ideas meet deep experience. Early-career designers are welcomed into high-level decisions. Senior staff still ask questions, teach and learn. Whether you’ve been here for three months or 30 years, your voice matters.
These stories capture the spirit of our team, the ways we support each other, and why some who left found their way back. It’s hard to find a place like REES.
The Bird Beneath the Waterline
It started out like many good ideas do in Oklahoma City’s office overlooking Lake Hefner… With a few glances out the window and someone asking, “What if we did something?”
In summer of 2011, Oklahoma was in drought. The water at Lake Hefner had pulled back far enough to expose a wide, empty stretch of shoreline. What was usually a shimmer of blue became a dry, cracked canvas. It was blank and begging for a little imagination.
Our team had an idea, and we got to work. After a few sketches in AutoCAD and a walk-though to check proportions, a group of REES members grabbed gloves. They spent the better part of a few sweltering days hauling rock across the sand. Triple-digit heat and all, we mapped out the shape of a scissor-tailed flycatcher, Oklahoma’s state bird, right there in the lake bed.
I enjoyed the fact that we just threw an idea out there and ended up doing it.
Michael Cromaz
“There was a group of 15 or so of us that went out there, a couple days in a row, and moved the rip rap rock to make the bird,” Michael Cromaz remembers. “I enjoyed the fact that we just threw an idea out there and ended up doing it.”
It was equal parts team-building and art experiment. A way to leave a little beauty behind in an otherwise barren stretch of shoreline. And something fun to look at from REES’ office on the third floor.
Fall brought rains, and the bird was slowly covered by the rising water. However, the water receded again at the end of the summer in 2012. This time, the story took on a life of its own. The news picked it up. Locals speculated.
Was it an alien symbol?
Was it a piece of Native art?
The mystery swirled until someone at REES finally spoke up. No, not aliens. Just a team of architects and designers who thought it’d be fun to build a bird together.
And even now, when the water pulls back, you can still catch a glimpse of it. The lines slightly shifted, the edges softened by time, but the shape still intact. Creativity and teamwork isn’t always about deadlines or deliverables. Sometimes, it’s about making something because you can… and having a little fun while you’re at it.
The friendships I had the opportunity to develop here are just priceless. They are good friends of mine forever.
Juan Perini
A Journey of Architecture and Perseverance
When Juan Perini first came to the United States from Colombia, everything felt new. A new culture, a new language, even a new way of practicing architecture. Juan and his wife bought a home in Edmond, Oklahoma and were raising a one-year-old.
Thinking back to those first days, he recalled, “We were like sponges. Absorbing everything because it was a complete change of life.”
Juan’s path to citizenship was quite long. Each step took years. In fact, the process stretched nearly 17 years, long enough for one of his children to grow into a teenager. Throughout each stage of the process, he was able to lean on the people at REES. Coworkers became friends who encouraged him. They supported him and even helped him practice English over weekly lunches.
“The friendships I had the opportunity to develop here are just priceless,” he said. “They are good friends of mine forever.”
REES stood by him every step of the way, even when his family relocated from Oklahoma City to Dallas. To Juan, what could have felt overwhelming became a journey shared with others.
As Juan looks back at the experience, perseverance comes to mind. “It was quite a trip to move from a completely different culture and language, and then to have the process last as long as it thought it would. You have to have perseverance to go through that.”
This experience is not something that Juan did alone. It was a journey shaped by the people at REES who stood with him through each step. His story is a reminder of the strength of community and the power of supporting one another.
The Road That Leads Back
Sometimes careers take a winding path, but the best roads eventually lead back home. Kyle Lombardo, Gary Pitts and Israel Solis know that firsthand. Each spent time away, exploring new opportunities, only to find themselves drawn back to the people and the culture that made REES feel like family.
Kyle first joined REES in 1982. Over the years, he worked on projects in healthcare, corrections and broadcast media. Twice, he left to pursue opportunities outside the firm, from government work to a large national architecture firm.
But both times, there was an undeniable pull back to REES. “Walking back into the office was like walking back into your living room,” Kyle said. “The culture is unique. People enjoy what they’re doing, and they value what you bring to the table. That’s hard to find anywhere else.”
People enjoy what they’re doing, and they value what you bring to the table. That’s hard to find anywhere else.
Kyle Lombardo
Gary’s path echoed the theme of return. He first joined REES in 2010 and developed close relationships that shaped his professional career. When he left for another opportunity, he quickly realized what made REES different.
“I missed the camaraderie,” Gary recalled. “At REES, people truly care about each other, not just about the work. You don’t find that in every office.” Coming back gave him a chance to reconnect with a culture where encouragement and collaboration are the daily standard.
Israel Solis came to REES in 2002, fresh from another firm. He quickly found a culture that felt different from anywhere he had worked before. “The people here are so much different—it feels more like a family,” Israel said. He left in 2014 for another opportunity but returned less than a year later, realizing what he valued most about REES couldn’t be found elsewhere.
For Kyle, Gary and Israel, returning to REES wasn’t about looking backward, but about choosing a place where they could thrive. After leaving for a season and coming back, they’ve chosen to invest in their careers here.
“You don’t realize it until you step away,” Kyle reflected, “but the relationships here are what make this place one of a kind.”
