How does it feel to be at Kimal Lumber for 14 years? Wow, 14 years….

Not sure where all that time went!  It’s been a fun ride.

 Where did you grow up? Go to school?

I grew up in east central Ohio around the Buckeye Lake area until we moved to Venice in 1993.  I attended Millersport High School and Hocking College in Nelsonville, Ohio.

This is just for fun, but this is called “The First Four”:

1. What is the first music album you purchased or received?  AC/DC – Dirty Deeds
2. What is the first concert you attended?  McGuffey Lane
3. What is the first car you owned?  1971 Dodge Swinger (upgraded version of the Dart)
4. What is the first job you had?  1978 – Worked in the kitchen of a nursing home evenings and weekends 

What jobs at Kimal did you hold before becoming a Purchaser?

After the crash, I took over the interior door shop from Mary Ellen.  It was just me, Tim Barbierie, Billy Gray and Carlos Gatica to start.  We had fun building it back up!  After that, I had the privilege of helping Al and George open the new store in Sarasota which I managed until I took my sabbatical to the Caymans.

What’s your favorite part of Purchaser role?

 I enjoy the vendor/partner relationship as opposed to the vendor/adversary roll which many of our competitors employ.

 What’s the most “memorable” experience you’ve had while at work here? (Amazing story? Humorous?)

So many I can’t tell but here’s a funny one.  Donny Thomas, Allen Bavry and I were on a business trip in Chicago and a vendor took us to a Cub’s game at Wrigley.  The vendor reserved the entire right field section which included free hot dogs, peanuts, etc… along with Budweiser and Miller products.  Donny and I noticed that Allen had disappeared for a couple of innings.  He had left the area of free beer to go stand in line to spend $10 or $12 on a craft beer.  That story always reminds me of two things.  1. I really miss Donny.  2. Allen really is a beer snob!

Would you like to comment on why you’ve stayed with Kimal for 14 years, and counting?

 You can tell a lot about a company by the tenure of its employees.  Kimal has many good people who have been here a long time, and I am happy to be a part of that. 

What about family members….and how do you spend your leisure time? 

My mother lives about 2 minutes from the Nokomis yard. I also have two sisters that live in the area.  My wife Tanya and I enjoy being outdoors whether its hiking, biking, boating, fishing, etc….