This document profiles 7 maintenance personnel at HollyFrontier's Cheyenne Refinery who are military veterans. It discusses each person's military background and how it prepared them for their current roles. It also highlights how HollyFrontier supports military veterans currently working at the refinery. The profiles show that the veterans appreciate how their military training focused on skills like leadership, teamwork, and maintenance that translate well to their industrial maintenance work.

1. HollyFrontier
Presents
Co-Worker Profile
Intro
Military veterans often talk about the bonds forged with other members of the armed services,
relationships which last well beyond their years of service. A group of maintenance personnel
at the Cheyenne Refinery share such a connection. In late 2014, a number of Cheyenne’s
maintenance military vets got together to enjoy one of the most storied rivalries in American
sport: the Army-Navy Game.
The college football game has been played annually for 85 years between the teams of the
United States Military Academy at West Point and the United States Naval Academy. The Navy
Midshipmen edged out the Black Knights of the Army in the latest contest, but the group had a
great time.
Refinery Manager Mike Achacoso appreciates each of these individuals and their commitment
to excellence.
“I am happy that HollyFrontier
Cheyenne has given an opportunity
for these military veterans to use
their skills, learned in defending our
country, for making our refinery and
company operate safer and more
reliably. I just wanted to thank
not only these people, but also the
many other military service men
and women who work at Cheyenne
and HFC, for their service to our
country.”
We are taking some time this
month to get to know a bit more
about these military members of
the maintenance and reliability
organization from HollyFrontier’s
northernmost refinery.
PROFILE
Date February 11, 2015
Employee James Axelson, John Jenkins, Michael Kane, Michael Lee,
Miles Sexton, Eren Sitki, Gerald Triplett
Job Title Maintenance and Reliability Personnel—Cheyenne
Nominated By Mike Achacoso
Continued on page 2
Enjoying some Service Academy football. From L-R: John Jenkins, Miles Sexton,
Laurel Sitki, James Axelson, Mike Kane, Gerald Triplett, Eren Sitki.

2. HollyFrontier
Presents
Co-Worker Profile
Eren Sitki
Maintenance and Reliability Manager Eren Sitki is in his third tour
of duty with HollyFrontier. After nine years in Tulsa and three
years at Woods Cross, Sitki joined Cheyenne last April.
Eren is a major reason so many veterans are on the job in his organi-
zation. Originally from Tampa, Florida, he enjoyed his time stateside
in the military, and sees the military as an effective training ground
for refinery work. In addition to learning discipline and work process standardization, he cites
the ability to apply leadership skills to a variety of unknowns as one of the best aspects of his
Army career.
Eren and his wife Laurel are both 1996 graduates of West Point.
James Axelson
I-EInstrumentation and Electrical Foreman James Axelson joined HollyFrontier
last March. A transplant from Marion, South Dakota, James was working for
Exxon in Houston when he joined the Navy. Unfortunately, a knee injury prevented
him from completing his Advanced Individual Training.
Although disappointed by not being able to remain in the service as long as he
hoped, if he had not received a medical discharge when he did James would not
have met his wife Michelle. Today, they are parents to 15-year-old daughter
Kimberly and 10-year-old son Ryan.
For James, the best part of military life is the camaraderie. He joined the Shriners
to get some of that back. He believes the military helped prepare him for his
time at HollyFrontier by teaching him how to be a leader and to be patient with
other people.
James appreciates HollyFrontier’s support for military members. “They support military here.
The weekend warriors, the reservists, get matched pay and time off to go to the training. They’re
committed to personnel improving themselves. That to me is the biggest thing. Anybody here
can go to college, and they’re willing to send you to classes to learn your trade better.”
John Jenkins
Reliability Engineering Supervisor John Jenkins grew up as a military
brat, and followed his dad’s legacy by joining the Air Force Academy.
His work on aircraft maintenance led him to South America and Europe
during more than five years on active duty.
While watching the Army-Navy game, John reminded everyone that his
school beat both schools. “So Air Force won the Commander-in-Chief
trophy, best record among the three service schools. I made sure to
point that out multiple times.”
For John, the best part of being in the military is the daily opportunity to
make a large impact on colleagues.
PROFILE
Continued on page 3Page 2

3. HollyFrontier
Presents
Co-Worker Profile
Working on aircraft maintenance helped prepare John for a career at Cheyenne. “It was a very
dynamic, challenging environment with lots of complexity, a very labor intensive environment just
like the refinery. So a lot of those skill sets exist in both environments.”
John believes HollyFrontier benefits from the skills learned in the military by veterans who are
now valuable members of the organization.
Mike Kane
Before becoming Maintenance Superintendent at Cheyenne last July,
Mike Kane was Warehouse Supervisor for about a year and a half. Prior
to that, the New York native had been stationed all over America. The
former Army Infantry Officer enlisted in the Reserves during college where
he made Sergeant before attending OCS and eventually spending a year in
Iraq as a Rifle Platoon Leader. While stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado
he served as a Rifle Platoon Leader, Rifle Company Executive Officer, and
Company Commander.
Mike believes the military life and extensive training he received
helped prepare him for work with HollyFrontier. “You have to be
flexible and make quick decisions under pressure, to deal with really stressful situations. I
think that’s what the military did for me coming into the civilian world. The military’s
focus on meticulous planning and attention to detail have helped him in his new role at the
Cheyenne Refinery.
Mike appreciates the way his small knit group at Cheyenne works together to troubleshoot daily
challenges. “We’re isolated so it’s not like we have a ton of repair shops. We have to figure it. The
focus on teamwork is great.”
Despite some challenging obstacles in the past year, Mike says, “The strength of the people is
pretty incredible. I genuinely care about my coworkers and believe that feeling is mutual.”
Mike and his wife Janna have two children, 5-year-old son Sully and 3-year-old daughter Rowan.
Michael Lee
Maintenance Supervisor Michael Lee joined the Navy out of high school and spent
four years on active duty as an aviation electronics technician before later joining
the Navy Reserves in the Seabees as a heavy equipment operator.
“The military molds, shapes, and creates leaders while instilling a sense of pride,
integrity, and duty in every service member,” he says. “The military prepares one for
service at any civilian employment by imparting a sense of urgency and accomplishing
the mission.”
A member of HFC since last year, Mike considers Cheyenne “a unique opportunity to
be on the ground floor of a cultural turnaround. The company has new leadership
and is in a transitional phase while implementing the Five Pillars Behaviors formula for
success. I feel fortunate and enthusiastic about being part of the team that will bring ‘doing the right
thing, the right way, every time’ to fruition.”
PROFILE
Page 3 Continued on page 4

4. HollyFrontier
Presents
Co-Worker Profile
Mike appreciates how accepting and welcoming HollyFrontier is towards members of the military and
appreciates personally working directly with several veterans who are also proud of their service. “As
a current drilling reservist, HFC is accommodating to my schedule of reserve duty and I appreciate the
positive support.”
Mike is currently in the Army Reserves and plans on ten more years of service.
Miles Sexton
You might wonder how Cheyenne stacks up against Asia, Australia, or the
Middle East for Maintenance Planning Supervisor Miles Sexton, who
entered the U. S. Navy as an electrician and sailed around the world as a naval
officer aboard several ships.
“My last duty station was in Norfolk, and southeast Virginia this is definitely not
as far as the weather and humidity goes! But my family really enjoys Cheyenne.
We love it, have met friendly people here, and the landscape and surrounding
National Parks are just fantastic.”
Miles credits the Navy with giving him the skills to be an effective leader in the refinery environment.
“Being both a leader and follower on varying size teams for missions great and small has given me
an appreciation of how people interact differently under varying levels of stress. I also very much
appreciate the technical insights I’ve received in my enlisted experience doing shiftwork as both an
operator-type role and as a technician.”
The Navy’s structured maintenance environment gave Miles what he calls “a mental compass” he often
references when considering ways to improve how Maintenance schedules and plans work.
Miles appreciates HollyFrontier’s open mind towards new-hire military veterans for recognizing that
“while we might seemingly not have directly relevant experience, there is a lot that we can bring to
the table.”
“I really enjoy coming to work every day and interacting with the people here,” says Miles. “Every
morning I look forward to coming here—and what more could one ask for?”
Gerald “Trip” Triplett
After growing up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where Exxon is prominent, Gerald
Triplett feels right at home in Cheyenne. “The weather is the biggest adjustment.
Instead of hot and humid, it is colder and dryer.”
Before becoming a Maintenance Supervisor for Cheyenne, Gerald spent twelve years in
the military, eight as a commissioned officer. The best part of life in the Navy was the
opportunity to tour different locations—Japan, Iraq, and Africa for example—as well as
the people, leadership, and responsibility.
“I spent my years in the service as a maintenance and project manager, so when it
comes to maintenance that work pretty much lines up with the role I’m doing now. It was pretty
much an easy progression from the military, mostly just a matter of translating military jargon to
refinery language.”
PROFILE
Page 4 Continued on page 5

5. HollyFrontier
Presents
Co-Worker Profile
Gerald works most closely with the embedded contractors for shared resources and manages the
Integrated Tank Program for HollyFrontier.
Outside of work, he enjoys staying physically fit, but laughs while acknowledging that “it gets a
little tougher after you turn 30.”
HollyFrontieris proud to have military men and women like the fine individuals of Cheyenne’s
maintenance and reliability group on the job. Thank you for all you do.
PROFILE
Page 5