Some people make a mark on you! Pete Peters was a friend some years ago. I first met him when he was 90, and very active. Pete made small monuments, literally. His first big project, as far as I knew, was for the city of Houston.
Streets need pavement and streets need street signs at intersections. Seems obvious. But how to put them there. Houston set up a system of making square markers, concrete, about four feet high, with street names and usually block numbers. Super system, durable, all those good things. The process was a bit slow to create a mold with letters inside, pour the concrete, then rebuild the mold for the next one.
Pete created a simple new process for a reusable mold, using hinges and hinge pins and removable letters. Simple changes that made the slow process much quicker, and a new contract was awarded. Corner markers are not HUGE items, but when you get the city of Houston, even years ago, that's a real deal.
As my wise elder once said: "Combine little streams to make a river, you know." The next step was the first Houston to Atlantic Coast pipeline, one little marker every mile along the way, made and installed.
He was one man who spent a lifetime making things; jewelry, ornaments, and markers. And along the way, creating amazing relationships through his church and friendship circles.
It would be a better world if LOTS more folks just did what Pete did.
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