American Faces #58 - The Difference Maker

I’ve known Rose W. for a handful of years. I've seen her and husband, Mitch, help in many different ways at NorthRidge Fellowship over the years. Recently, I saw Rose take a very active role in helping with recent food distributions in Minneapolis and also at a local trailer home park. It was the latter location where I saw her making profound impacts in the lives of others. Rose is bi-lingual, with Spanish as her second language. You could even say it’s her first language. Rose spent her formative years on the West coast and in Mexico. Her multi-cultural upbringing has given her a wonderful gift for communicating with our Hispanic neighbors. Rose has an engaging smile and a warm heart. Her personal journey, while not easy, has developed in her a genuine compassion that is making a profound impact on the people she serves. Rose has a favorite bible verse that she says she tries to live by:

You are amazing, Rose! May each of us follow your example, by making a difference in the lives around us.

American Faces #57 - The Craftsmen

American Faces No. 57

Sometimes in life you have an opportunity to take a step back in time – a time when craftsmanship, quality products, quality people and a handshake really meant something. Recently, that opportunity was mine when I met the Timms, a family that owns a sawmill in Maple Plain, MN. The Timms welcomed me in like a longtime friend, and happily shared stories of how they create finishing touches in custom homes through wood-crafted pieces and structures they build themselves.

At the Timms’ mill, logs and lumber are stacked all around, surrounded by wonderful piles of sawdust (man glitter, if you will). The Timms’ knowledge of sawmilling goes three generations deep. They truly understand wood. They can actually “read” the wood, and know how to coax the most yield and quality out of each log and timber. It’s an amazing thing to see. And the Timms do it every day. These guys are amazing craftsmen, and have a work ethic like sawyers of yesteryear. I’m so glad I had a chance to step back in time to meet these men and to share a little of their story.

American Faces #56 - Swing batter, batter swing

American Faces No. 56

Peter Kruse is one of those people you’d call a “maker.” And a successful young entrepreneur. His current enterprise, Delano Bats, began on the baseball field at Delano High School, where Peter decided he wanted to make his own bat. Peter – just a 9th grader at the time – got a lathe and started experimenting. He sold his first hand-turned maple wood bat that next summer.

Seven years later, through Delano Bats Peter makes and sells five different wood bat models online to customers throughout the country, and his small home-town manufacturing operation includes a CNC router system and finishing shop, in addition to those original wood lathes. Already experienced in the demands of business, and what it takes to produce and deliver a high-quality product, Peter continues to carve his own path to success, studying manufacturing engineering at Saint Cloud State University as he experiments with new designs and materials, looking for ways to improve his product. When we asked what’s next, Peter told us he’s developed a prototype (patent pending) for a lighter, harder-hitting wood bat. With a passion for craftsmanship, and a head for business, Peter’s well on his way to a home-run career.