Steel Workshop – The Best is Yet to Come

Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Blackadar are among the ranks of the very, very happy SteelMaster customers. Part of this joy stems from managing to make some extra bucks here and there by participating in SteelMaster’s referral program.

“It’s not difficult for me to recommend SteelMaster’s buildings and service to other folks!” exclaims Vernon. “And, the unexpected checks from people mentioning my name when they buy a building, well that doesn’t hurt my feelings either! Am I a happy customer? You bet I am!”

Vernon, like all SteelMaster customers, has a story to share. Originally from Massachusetts, he started his college tenure at Ohio State University with his sights set on becoming a veterinarian. When he learned the course changed the nature of its requirements for Ohio residency, he switched majors and graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Dairy Science. This was “back in the day,” according to Vernon.

His father purchased over 500 acres in Lithia, Florida, located about 30 miles east of Tampa. He made good use of the knowledge he garnered while in college since Vernon and his family milked 425 cows three times a day for 34 years. One can not argue this as good, honest, hard work. Even though taking care of the Dairy Farm and cattle was a successful family venture, the best for Vernon was yet to be.

He now spends most of his time in his SteelMaster 40’x60’ Workshop where he owns and operates Lithia Woodworks, LLC. Working on the farm instilled a relentless work ethic in Vernon, but his “gift”, as he refers to it, was handed down to him through his grandfather on his mother’s side. His grandfather owned a woodworking shop in Nova Scotia and crafted fine furniture.

Building and re-finishing hand-made furniture and woodworking projects has become Vernon’s passion, and he has built quite a name for himself. He has been featured in magazines and newspapers. He is a testament to someone who not only makes a living doing what he loves but is doing it without any formal training whatsoever.

“My only problem is I cannot say no to anyone,” laughed Vernon. “Today, I am working on re-finishing the wood on the stock of a gun for someone.”

Vernon is not unlike the folks in the Virginia Beach home office of SteelMaster in this regard. They have trouble with the “no” word too, unless it is used as part of “No problem!” And the team at SteelMaster shares exuberance for what they do and willingness to please each customer – just like Vernon does.

SteelMaster’s steel and metal pre-fabricated arched buildings are perfect for storing whatever tools of the trade customers utilize. The unencumbered clear span design is perfect for safely protecting materials like the various types of wood Vernon uses for his designs. Another big plus is not having posts inside to have to navigate around when he is working. As Vernon put it, “Hey, I figured if SteelMaster is good enough to provide buildings for Cape Canaveral, then they would be good enough for me!”

Vernon sounded confident when he said, “I had an insurance agent come to the property not too long ago to provide quotes for me. Our home is 50 years old, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. We have been lucky here and dodged some terrible hurricanes, but if one ever comes through Tampa Bay, you can bet I’ll be taking cover in my SteelMaster building.”

Vernon said he posed an off-the-record question to the insurance agent while he was there. “If a hurricane was to come into the bay, if you were me, would you stay in this house – or this SteelMaster building?”

The agent looked at the house, turned and looked 350’ feet over to the SteelMaster building, scratched his head and said, “Well, if I were you, I would definitely hunker down in your workshop building there, not your house.”

SteelMaster’s steel and metal pre-engineered buildings are designed for a broad range of residential and commercial applications including the workshop Vernon Blackadar enjoys, agricultural storage, homes, farm buildings, garages, Quonset Huts^TM, airplane hangars, RV storage, roofing systems, carports, military buildings, commercial warehousing, and industrial storage as well as a wide variety of custom building applications including athletic facilities, retail stores, churches, bus stops, smoke shacks, doggie dorms, and correctional facilities.

Due largely in part to the SteelMaster brand being unmatched by anyone else in the industry, excellence in customer service, and the PIS referral program, SteelMaster recently celebrated its 38-year Anniversary. There are also the people like the Blackadar’s to thank for our success. Here’s to your continued success too, Vernon!

The best is still yet to come.

– written by Tammy Kistler
(Tammy is a freelance writer, residing in Hampton Roads)