This is a great Human Interest Story on a Northwest Indiana Garbage Man. 

January 28, 2010
BY JEFF MANES jeffmanes@sbcglobal.net

“… If I do not stop to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to them?”

– The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., April 1968, Memphis, Tenn.

Chris Wilk lives in a gorgeous 3,200-square-foot home in Wheatfield with a finished 1,200-square-foot basement.

He and his wife, Gina, also have acreage. Their back yard features a gigantic swing set, sand box and an in-ground trampoline for their 9-year-old son, Ben.

Wilk, 36, can afford it; he pulls down $80,000-plus per year with benefits.

He’s a garbage man.

. . .

“I grew up in Crown Point,” Wilk began. “I wrestled (at 125 pounds) for Crown Point High School.”

Chris, wrestling for coach Scott Vlink’s Bulldogs might be part of the reason you can endure the job you do. Talk to me.

“I’m a commercial front-load driver for Waste Management. I work out of the Portage shop. I do gas stations, restaurants, the malls … .”

Do you have a partner?

“No, everybody works by themselves now, whether you’re on a commercial or residential route.”

View the Rest of Jeff’s Story: http://www.post-trib.com/news/manes/2015330,jmanes0128-wilk.article