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When Rebecca and Alan Oates decided to make some life changes, they went in full bore. They not only got married in 2004 but also started their own company that year. Rebecca Oates was teaching Spanish and English as a second language and was ready for a career change. Alan Oates, a union painter, had worked with his father in the petroleum and coatings industry as a teenager and moved on to industrial painting, but always had the entrepreneurial drive to start a business.

The pair co-founded Diverse Works and their services include commercial, architectural and light industrial painting and coatings; intumescent coatings; and in-house shop painting. Among their projects was the Edith Green 鈥揥endell Wyatt Federal Building, in which their company’s scope of work grew from touch-up painting on the steel of the west fa莽ade and solar canopy frame to tenant improvement painting on several floors and painting the elevator doors.

The project allowed Diverse Works to bring back two employees during the recession and hire a woman who had experience installing wall-talker, dry erase boards. Diverse Works was also able to implement a new safety system for work on the building. The safety system includes static lines, ropes, fasteners and blocks that all fit into a backpack and helped make Diverse Works more competitive for future jobs, according to the U.S. General Services Administration.

Since its founding, Diverse Works has built a strong community of MWESB firms and frequently connects with them for advice and to share opportunities.

鈥淲e’ve gotten to know so many over the years and it feels like we’re all cheerleaders for each other.聽It’s great to get to work together on projects and showcase what certified firms can do,鈥� Rebecca Oates said. 鈥淲e are also mentors in the Port of Portland Mentor-Prot茅g茅 Program.聽We participated as proteges about 10 years ago and hope we can help other certified firms as much as the program helped us.鈥�

Environmentally friendly business operations and community service are key priorities for Diverse Works, which has donated work and materials for various projects that include local schools, the Princess Project and the Latino Network.

鈥淲e love to help out in ways that benefit kids because we have two young children and know how important a safe and beautiful environment is for children,鈥� Rebecca Oates said.