Garney Celebrates Key Leadership Retirements

We are proud to celebrate the retirements of Garney leaders Mike Heitmann, CEO Emeritus, and Scott Parrish, President Emeritus. In the fall of 2023, Garney welcomed a new executive leadership team, including CEO David Burkhart and Presidents Matt Foster and Matt Reaves, marking a new chapter for Garney. This transition is not merely a change of guard but a strategic plan that propels Garney into a future marked by secure retirements for employee-owners, holistic water solutions, and maintaining its reputation as the nation’s top water contractor.

While we’ve celebrated the beginning of a new chapter for Garney, we want to reflect on the successes of the previous chapter’s leadership and their legacy. Mike Heitmann, CEO at Garney from 2011-2023, is retiring at the end of March.

Mike spent his entire 34-year career at Garney, helping shape the company into the powerhouse it is today. Starting out as a Project Administrator after graduating from the University of Kansas in 1990, Mike quickly learned the ropes in the field, traveling around the country to build projects. In the mid-90s, he established a presence for the company in the Southeast, propelling Garney into the industrial sector. Clients like Southern Company, International Paper, and Westinghouse Electric were added to Garney’s growing repertoire of private work. Mike eventually relocated back to Kansas with his family in the mid-2000s and was named Vice President before becoming President and CEO in 2011.

Mike always had a vision for marketing, business development, and high-level strategy that drove the company forward. His humble and down-to-earth leadership style proved massively effective. Under his guidance, the firm grew from 720 employees and $422 million in revenue in 2011 to more than 2,000 employees and $1.8 billion in revenue in 2023.

In retirement, Mike is excited to pursue his passions of restoring old, historic buildings, traveling the world with his wife, Susan, and visiting their four daughters.

We congratulate Scott Parrish, President Emeritus at Garney, on his retirement. Scott dedicated his career to the company, starting out in the field in 1988 under the tutelage of his father, Jerry Parrish, a Superintendent at Garney. He transitioned to the office, becoming a Project Manager who oversaw the construction of pipeline projects throughout Texas and the Midwest, before relocating to Kansas City in 1995. He was named President in 2018.

Scott has always led with energy and assertiveness. His drive for continuous improvement and standard of excellence elevated those who worked around him. Scott always maintained strong relationships with clients, engineers, and vendors, which strengthened Garney’s brand and reputation in the water industry. He played a key role in positioning Garney as a leading contractor and CMAR in the Texas market. Scott was instrumental to the success of many of Garney’s largest pipe projects to date, including the monumental Vista Ridge Water Supply Project—the largest P3 water project in North America.

In retirement, Scott looks forward to spending more time with his daughters and father, enjoying the fresh Colorado mountain air, and staying connected and traveling with fellow retired Garney employee-owners.

Mike and Scott have each left a profound impact on Garney and generations of employee-owners past, present, and future. We thank them for their many years of service and tireless dedication to the company, and we wish them both the best in retirement!