Meet the Team - Part 2
- Crippen Woodworks
- Mar 30
- 4 min read
I love the work we do! And above that, I love 'doing life' with these guys. This group, along with the fellas in the last newsletter, is my circle of friends. The people I laugh with and learn from—they are a part of my family.
MEET DJ
DJ has been with us a little over a year now but he has been building decks for nearly 15 years. He was also involved in the manufacturing of New Castle Steel deck framing in Marietta.
He works closely with Fidel to manage the projects and keep operations running smoothly. We like passing off all unusual ‘puzzling-pieces’ of the projects to him because he always finds a way to figure them out. We call them ‘DJ’s problems,’ and to date, he has solved them all!
DJ is a talented builder, creative problem solver, innovative fabricator and a dedicated family man. His background in both building and fabrication helps us create whatever our clients can imagine.
MEET FIDEL
Fidel started with us as a lead deck builder nine years ago. Then he joined us full time, as a project manager, in 2020.
As a builder himself, he knows exactly what our deck builders and craftsmen need to keep projects moving and executed at a high level.
We are also blessed to have Fidel’s brothers and father building for us, which adds to our family vibe and the camaraderie we value. They are a family of tremendously talented craftsmen. While they prefer the physicality of deck builds, they are highly capable finish carpenters, and it shows in the details of every project.
Fidel is our primary point of contact with our customers once the project is rolling-and they love him!
MEET DOUGLAS
Douglas is probably one of the most talented young carpenters I have had the pleasure to work with.
He is always learning, always up to a challenge and always ready to go!
Douglas and his team have been building for us since 2019. They are a highly skilled group of craftsmen, capable of crossing over to the cabinetry and millwork side of our business.
Douglas and his guys can build anything! They can take a project from footings and frame all the way to the last trim detail.
MEET KEVIN:
Kevin came on board in 2022. He went from very little experience with computers—I mean he could turn one on and send an email—to learning AutoCAD and
Microvellum, two extremely demanding software programs. As he learned the software, he simultaneously learned our building methods in order to move us off of a drafting table with a scale rule and into the 21st century.
He even figured out how to run our CNC. Before Kevin arrived, our CNC was the shop’s equivalent of a treadmill with the power cord unplugged and clothes hanging off the side!
As if that wasn’t enough, Kevin works in the shop—building, sanding, and assembling—and has become our LED master. Our cabinet lighting is next-level thanks to Kevin.
MEET PAIGE:
Paige would prefer to stay out of the newsletter and behind the scenes but I can’t let that happen. Fidel recently called Paige the ‘glue’ of Crippen Woodworks.
It has been said that a balanced life is lived on the line between chaos and order: enough chaos to challenge us to grow, stretch, and learn; enough order to keep us stable and grounded, drawing from the wisdom of lessons already learned. That statement may be true, but I have a natural bent for chaos—flying by the seat of my pants, trusting my gut, figuring it out along the way. Since I do the hiring, guess how the company and fellas roll.
Paige, however, is an Olympic-level, organizer’s organizer and system builder. Paige joined the team about three years ago and in that short time, she has implemented and sustained our project management software, worked closely with our accountant to clean our books, streamlined our sales process, and even made the office look like an office rather than a
computer in a disheveled storage closet.
We are running on systems and processes now, rather than intuition. And I’ve gotta say: even though this level of order is contrary to my nature, I love it!
So that’s who they are professionally, and I guess technically, they are employees. But to me
they are my partners in building this business and serving our customers. This group,
along with the fellas in the last newsletter, is my circle of friends. The people I laugh with, learn from, and get through struggles with. They are a part of my family.
I love the work we do! And above that, I love ‘doing life’ with these guys. We work together to support and finance all the really important stuff in life. We all are in different stages: raising families, taking care of aging parents, and all the other ‘life stuff.’ Douglas has a new baby in the house. DJ is raising two young children. Fidel is getting married this year. My young adults are headed to college and adventure.
I even started dropping off my son to work with these guys and the fellas in the shop when he was 8-10 years old. They helped me teach him work ethic, the trade and more. These guys literally helped me raise my son. Don’t get me wrong, I love the weekends—I mean, after all that’s where fishing happens—but I love Mondays too! I love my job because of this team.
