By McKenzie Misiaszek

Gavin Gregory’s commute is five minutes. Every morning, he leaves his house and arrives at Precinct 4’s Hockley Service Center, next door to the Hockley Community Center. He has lived in the Hockley area since high school, and after graduating and working for Waller County, he made the switch to Harris County Precinct 4 in 2022.

As an operator, he is one of a handful of people in the northernmost part of the Precinct who runs an array of heavy-duty machinery, such as excavators, vacuum trucks, and all types of large mowers. Many of his days are spent mowing ditches along roadways, picking up trash, and clearing culverts.

“It’s every little kids dream to play with big equipment,” said Gavin.

Gavin is one of the lucky few living out their childhood dream while also helping people across their community. No time is his job more important than June 1 through November 30 — hurricane season.

Preparing Precinct 4

Before and during hurricane season, Gavin and his fellow team members double down on keeping the region prepared for severe weather. On top of making sure ditches and drainage areas are clear, they cut low-hanging branches to keep homes, businesses, and powerlines safe in case of high winds.

“As a whole crew, we all have to work together,” said Gavin. “Everybody plays different parts. You’ve got to have flaggers, people setting cones out, and drivers. And you’ve got to have me in the [excavator] picking stuff up.”

2024 was the first year Gavin worked during a hurricane. Like all members of the road and bridge team, he was pulling 12-hour shifts six days a week. Thankfully, his neck of the woods didn’t experience much damage during Hurricane Beryl, but other areas of Precinct 4 did.

Instead of sitting around, he and the rest of the Hockley crew were sent to help parts of Katy and Tomball that were hit harder by the storm. When those areas were cleared, they even went into Precinct 3 to assist their road and bridge teams with storm debris.

“They were real happy to hear that we were helping,” said Gavin.

Wildlife watch

Gavin’s crazy stories go beyond hurricane season. As someone who is outside all day, every day working along rural roads and ditches, it’s not uncommon for him to come across wildlife he’d rather not encounter. In April, as he was driving the excavator on Katy Hockley Road, he came across a 12-foot alligator sitting quietly in the ditch.

“I took a picture and sent it to my boss. I was like, ‘I don’t know if it’s dead or not, but I’m not fixing to walk up to it and find out,” Gavin said. “It was pretty crazy. It’s not every day you walk up on an almost 12-foot alligator.”

Sadly, the alligator had been hit and killed by a car. Following proper procedures, Gavin and the Precinct 4 crew called Texas Parks and Wildlife to remove the reptile so it would not pose a distraction or danger to drivers.

Supporting his community

Most of the time, Gavin’s days don’t contain any unwanted surprises, like alligators. Instead, he’ll find himself chatting with residents as he clears the ditches in front of their homes and sharing what’s happening in the Precinct.

As their neighbor, he knows how important it is to lend a helping hand. So, when a resident asks if he can trim trees just a bit closer to their property line or make sure the grass near their driveway is cut, he happily obliges.

“This area is special to me,” said Gavin. “I live out here, and my grandma lives behind me. My mom actually just built the house next door to me. So, it's nice when you get to keep everything nice and pretty around your house."