Stairways - From France to Seattle

From France to Seattle

One Year with the Compagnons…

I am a new employee of Seattle Stair and how I wound up here has been an amazing journey, which when I began, I always hoped that I would be working with such skilled, passionate and interesting people as I have found here.

In August of 2011, I was chosen as the first American to take part in an international fellowship exchange program at the Coubertin Foundation in Saint-Rémy-les-Chevreuse, France with the Compagnons du Devoir.  My 11 months there were filled with workshop training, art, computer drafting, architectural history, mathematics and cultural events and trips.  I learned as much about a wonderful country and culture as I did about my work.

Shawn, who was has been bringing in French Compagnons for several years to work and live in Seattle, has graciously given me the opportunity to become part of the team here and I am loving every day, as I continue to learn and develop into a talented craftsman.

Nicolas Esposito - Craftsman

http://www.coubertin.fr/

http://www.afcoubertin.org/11.html

BEAUTIFUL TAHOE

BEAUTIFUL TAHOE

I have a lot of connections to Lake Tahoe.
• Framing houses there—Summer of ‘74
• Skiing with my dad—Winter of ‘76 (Squaw Valley, Heavenly Valley, Kirkwood)
• Honeymoon with Marilyn—Summer of ‘79 (still married)
• Last place I saw my dad—Late 90’s
• Buried my dad—1999

So it was with some emotion that I returned there for the first time in many years. I flew into Tahoe Valley Airport with my flight instructor on a beautiful fall day in early October. I was there to share our great story about custom stairs with area architects.

As we flew out the next morning and passed over the town of Truckee, CA it reminded me of rafting the Truckee River with my buddies at the unenlightened age of 20. Unenlightened indeed….and untrained, unguided, unhelmeted and unsafe. Only two guys overboard and we all lived to tell the story. It’s amazing we didn’t get swept out to the Pacific Ocean in the heavy spring runoff.

I will always look back fondly on the summer I spent there framing custom homes. It was a foundational building block for what I do now in custom stair design. Check out the aerial photo…….the houses I built were all in Tahoe Keys, visible on the left side of the image. Thank you Ron Triano, wherever you are.

My peak experience this trip? Dinner at Nephele’s on Ski Run Boulevard. www.nepheles.com/   I WILL be going back there again!  As soon as I land my first stair project in Tahoe.

Shawn F. Christman
President
Seattle Stair and Design