Beyersdorf comes from Shawano department
By Robert Cloud
When Waupaca County’s new highway commissioner talks about his prior experience, he is most enthusiastic about his more than 18 years in the Wisconsin Army National Guard.
Casey Beyersdorf, who replaced Dean Steingraber earlier this month, was deployed with the 724th Engineer Battalion to Iraq in 2003-04, then deployed to Afghanistan with the 229th Engineering Company in 2012-13.
While overseeing large road construction projects in Afghanistan, Beyersdorf earned a Bronze Star.
He also trained Afghan soldiers how to build roads.
In Iraq, Beyersdorf managed the rebuilding of a power plant.
“In the Army, I’m a heavy equipment operator,” Beyersdorf said. “That’s how it all got started, my working with dirt.”
A 1997 graduate of Marion High School, Beyersdorf attended the University of Wisconsin-Plattville. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in building construction management and drafting design in 2002.
While going to college, Beyersdorf began working for Ayres Associates, an architectural and engineering firm headquartered in Green Bay.
Among the projects he worked on for Ayres was the U.S. Highway 10 reconstruction near Winchester and U.S. 45.
In 2006, Beyersdorf was hired as a construction foreman by the Shawano County Highway Department.
Three years later, he became the assistant highway commissioner.
“I think that what I want to accomplish is to provide the best infrastructure that I can with the budget, equipment and materials I am provided,” Beyersdorf said.
He is also concerned about the safety of those working on the roads.
On May 26, 2015, Derek Stempa, with the Shawano County Highway Department, was killed after being struck by a minivan. Stempa was working as a flagger in a construction zone on State Highway 47 and County Trunk G.
“I had just driven past Derek and was less than a quarter-mile from the work site when I heard the call on the radio,” Beyersdorf said.
With traffic on the highway down to one lane, Stempa had been holding up a stop sign to halt traffic when the minivan hit him head on.
In 2014, there were 12 work zone fatalities statewide, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
In some instances, distracted motorists have driven past orange barrels and barricades, directly into work areas.
April 11-15 is National Work Zone Awareness Week. The theme for the week is “Safer driving. Safer work zones. For everyone.”
Beyersdorf reminds motorists to slow down and pay careful attention when driving through work zones.
Married with two children, Beyersdorf said he and his family are currently looking to move to Waupaca County.