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Dear Reader,
This blog is now an archive. John Abrams (Founder of South Mountain, author of this blog, and a book of the same name) retired on December 31, 2022. All posts published up until this date are preserved below.

For updates on John's next chapter, visit abramsangell.com.

For updates on South Mountain's second act, subscribe to our newsletter using the form below.

Carver Ken Left His Mark

By John Abrams | October 23, 2020

As we steadily approach a Nex Gen Transition that will culminate two years from now, a two way migration is occurring at SMCo. Elders migrate out, and new faces/new talents migrate in. In the last decade, six longtime employee-owners have transitioned to new careers or retired. Collectively, they represent 168 years of employment

The most recent retirement was that of Ken Leuchtenmacher.

We first ran into Ken working up on the hill above the Allen Farm at Rob Kendall’s camp. Must have been around 1988. At the time, he was building solar greenhouses under the Solar Sanctuary moniker.

Ken grew up on a farm in Iowa – a true corn-fed boy – who went on to study at the University of Iowa. When the school shut down in 1969 due to the horrific shootings at Kent State, he migrated to Minneapolis and studied art for a while at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Afterward, he worked a couple silk screening jobs: first for a bottling company, then for a sign-making firm that created all the posters for IDS tower, the tallest building in Minnesota. The grandparents of his best childhood friend had a camp on East Chop. Upon visiting in 1974, Ken was smitten. He went back to Iowa, dealt with the way-too-early death of his Dad, returned to the Vineyard, and never left. He worked at the hospital for a while before joining Roger Wey’s construction company. They poured the slab in the second house we ever built, in 1976. (I remember that slab. Can’t say it was the best ever.) Soon after, Ken signed on with Burnham and Magnunson, earning his carpentry chops before starting his own business in the early 80s.

In 1993, we began work on our largest project – by some measure – to date: the Kohlberg House at Swan Neck. By that time, Ken had formed a partnership with Patty Egan and Larry Schubert. We hired all three to help us with the endless carpentry in this highly crafted timber-framed house. Shortly after completion, Ken migrated to SMCo. For many years, he was Billy Dillon’s solid second. Quite the duo – Ken was the quiet, steady, curmudgeonly assistant who always kept his talented and rambunctious leader in line.

He would work in the shop on rainy days. In 2005, he became an SMCo owner. A year later, after a long shop tour-of-duty building the Marcus stairway, he stayed. And never left until this May. He was a fixture as Jim’s assistant shop lead. A craftsman through and through, and an artist too, he was always a steady force and a mentor to our younger carpenters and woodworkers.

He also became our resident stairway maven. I have no idea how many times he set up in the annex, crafted a complete housed-stringer stairway over the next month or so, disassembled it, took it to the job site, and installed it.

Ken doesn’t suffer fools gladly, he doesn’t tolerate injustice, and he’s never one to pull a punch. He has a way of giving you (and me!) a piece of his mind that always sticks. Because he is generally quiet, his voice, when raised, carries weight. And for Kenny, nothing ever stands in the way of quality, his one-word guiding star. He is a standard-bearer.

During his time at SMCo, Ken took classes and learned woodturning and wood carving. These began as avocations and became integral parts of his craft. The essence of professional development. He always continued to grow his skills.

Never one to stay idle, Ken was recently recruited by his old partner-in-crime Billy Dillon, and Camp Jabberwocky, to do an extraordinary job.

He transformed a swing pergola (that we built when we did our Jabberwocky renovation in 2018-2019) into a memorial to celebrate campers who have died over the 60 years of Jabberwocky’s storied past. He hand-carved their names – 24 of them – into the re-purposed tree trunks that support the pergola. “When you go to camp [as a kid] , you carve your name on a tree,” Ken said in a Vineyard Gazette article “It’s like they’ve been there and carved it themselves.”

Each day camp caretaker Jack Knower, a former counselor and keeper of institutional knowledge, would tell Ken about the campers whose names he would carve that day. Ken said it was almost a religious experience. “I really feel connected to these people.”

We will always feel deeply connected to you, Ken. You’re an essential part of our history.

Categories: Employee Ownership, Small Business, South Mountain Company, Uncategorized Tags: carving, ken leuchtenmacher, retirement

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Justin

    October 27, 2020 at 12:24 pm

    You know,

    I never know if I am opening a retirement send-off or an obituary….Dead or retired, you dinosaurs are the fuel that still keeps me going, despite a decade (and a half) away. Pandemics and recessions and a litany of other roadblocks all feel ephemeral and attainable with the foundation you gave me. Kenny, SMC, you are missed!

    Reply
    • John Abrams

      October 29, 2020 at 2:39 pm

      Justin I never know if I’m hearing a compliment or a rebuke. :). A decade and a half it’s been? Really? You must be getting as old as us! Hope all is well – always good to hear from you.

      Reply
  2. Tim Cuppett

    October 27, 2020 at 1:23 pm

    Marco and I miss working with you guys. I have a good Ken story: When I saw him chiseling our stair rail I said : “ Ken, I love the whittling!” Ken sternly said: “I don’t whittle….”

    Makes me laugh every time.

    Cheers good Friends,
    Tim

    Reply
  3. Marco Rini

    October 27, 2020 at 1:25 pm

    If at the end of my December years and my mulch recycles back to this planet in human form I am going to work on an extraordinary talent I can give back and apply with South Mountain. SM is extraordinary and when I am a bit down or need to be inspired, I often look and read through The Company We Keep!

    You all have been and continue to be a lovely gift in our life.

    With gratitude,

    Marco

    Reply
    • John Abrams

      October 29, 2020 at 2:42 pm

      Tim and Marco – How do we get so lucky? To have clients like you become a part of our lives is pretty much as good as working can get. And then some.

      Reply
  4. Pete Ives

    October 28, 2020 at 8:49 am

    Now everyday’s a Saturday.

    Reply
  5. Helen Green

    October 29, 2020 at 12:14 pm

    Congratulation Ken!
    Loved the story about Camp Jabberwocky. So moving.
    I’ve known Ken a long time ( went to his wedding) but didn’t know a lot about his work history. What a great career, enjoy your retirement. Well deserved.

    Reply
  6. Barbara Kassel

    October 29, 2020 at 12:53 pm

    Nice article about Kenny! And very good blog. You must have a person who compiles all this, no? With being so busy. Anyway, nice to be on that list!

    All best,
    B

    Reply
  7. John Abrams

    October 29, 2020 at 2:51 pm

    Barbara,
    Thanks for kind words. I do the writing, but lemme tell you I have plenty of help. Deirdre (our COO) offers tone policing and Abbie (our marketing coordinator) is the mighty force who provides ace editing, finds the images, assembles it, and publishes it.

    Reply

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