The Nuclear Family: The Lesters
The Lesters: Clockwise from back left are Amy and Kurt Lester with their children Darby and Jake.
When Facility Representative Kurt Lester started at Pantex a little over five years ago, he was excited to be surrounded by people who have similar interests as him. In his words, “a bunch of nerds.” Then a couple of years later, Kurt started seeing more familiar—or rather familial—faces around the plant.
In 2022, his daughter, Darby, started as an intern, and was officially hired on in 2023 as a Mechanical Design Engineer after a year in the Career One engineering program. Then his son, Jake, started in 2022—first in Quality before moving to his current position in Safety Analysis Engineering in late 2024. Finally, his wife, Amy, left her 21-year career in elementary education to try her hand at something new at Pantex, and now works as an Issues Management Specialist for Production Operations.
Mom, daughter, and son all credit their dad with helping guide them to their positions. He searched and matched each member of his family with jobs he thought they would be good at. Over time, each family member got the call to join their new family—the Pantex family.
“I’ve known I wanted to be an engineer since I was twelve,” Darby said, “so I figured Pantex was the most logical place to work. Now, it’s weird waking up and getting ready at my house with my parents, then going to work with my parents, then eating dinner with my parents. It’s a lot sometimes, but it’s a blessing.”
Both siblings, who started within a few months of each other, will be getting married within a month of each other in 2025. They work two cubicles apart from each other and feel very proud for each other that they have secured great jobs so early in their careers.
“We work at one of the premiere places in the panhandle, and the fact that all four of us get to work out here? It’s amazing. We are very lucky,” Jake added. “We get to save some money, too, because we drive to work together sometimes.”
With the whole family at Pantex, “Lester Lunches” and group chats named “The Funky Bunch” soon commenced. They really love to “pop in” on each other when they can and love that they can share the common language that comes with working at such a unique place all together. When friends see one of the Lesters out and about, they will ask where the rest of the family is.
“When other people see my kids, they always tell me what great ‘young adults’ they are, and I am a very proud mom,” Amy said. “Of course, when they hear I’m married to Kurt, they always joke—but then tell me what a good man he is and that he is great at what he does.”
A very important member of the Lester family whose presence is felt at the Pantex Plant is Kurt’s late father, Tom. People find out that a member of the family has a connection to Granddad Tom and the stories start to flow.
“It is a really special feeling to know that we are continuing the legacy of my granddad,” Jake said. “There is a lot of pride in knowing now that three generation of Lesters have served the country and the world through the mission of Pantex. We lost him at such a young age and don’t have a lot of memories of him…so when people come up and tell a story about him, I am happy that he did such a good job and that people knew him. I think he would be proud of Darby and I for making it out here.”
When considering the fact that they all work together, Kurt is glad his family is able to carry on a tradition his dad started.
“I think people within the Pantex community enjoy seeing families or familial relationships at Pantex since Pantex is a tight knit community by default of what we do out here. As parents, there is a joy knowing that your children are in successful careers and in an industry where there is a lot of growth for them to achieve. I am thankful for that.”