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Don’t Forget! You Saw it in the
March 2017 #10212 Page #12
The Passing of Greatness
by CARL SCHOENING V P E A G L E M E TA L P R O D U C T S
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
I said I wouldn’t write again, but I felt compelled to, at the very least, commemorate the passing of a great human being. In the past few weeks, many of you have read articles about the passing of Dwight Hikel. Dwight was something pretty special. Not just as a businessman or component manufacturer, but he was truly a great human and left quite a mark on all those he came in contact with. It is the kind of imprint that changes you forever. I had met Dwight in passing over the years, but never really got to know him until 2001. I was trying to capture new business for the hardware company I was working for. My first impression was that he would be a hard sell. He was, but not for the reasons you may think. Dwight wasn’t challenging me to reduce prices or increase service. Dwight was challenging me to be a better version of myself. The only way I would get a win with Dwight was by going to a place I had never been before. I have had great mentors over the years, but my interactions with Dwight forced me to think in a way that was different. He wanted to do business with people he liked and that were like him. I had to be more confident and more knowledgeable than ever before. Dwight wanted my best effort.....every time. Dwight set the stage for me to use my new skills in every facet of my life, as he had. Be better at everything you do and be confident that when you make a decision that it is the best decision. Embrace that decision and fight for your ideas and ideals. I learned to do that. Sometimes it shocked people. Sometimes it was on the unpopular side of an issue. Sometimes I had to endure negative reactions, but I would stand for what I believed regardless of the consequences. Dwight instilled in me through our business interactions a new way to be me. Dwight was a leader in this industry from the beginning. I have friends who worked with him in his earliest days in the industry and all have said the same things about him. His energy was the highest, his passion never waned, and his joy was unquenchable. Dwight found joy in many things. Dwight worked extremely hard to move a fledgling industry into the mainstream. Then, with the help of his wife and son, he built the prototype truss plant that all truss plants aspire to be. Dwight took chances and the new plant was a chance taken based on his decision to try something new. He stood by the decision and made Shelter Systems the greatest show on earth. Things weren’t always easy, but he stuck with his plan and made success bend to his will. I attended the 40th anniversary of Shelter Systems. My take-away may have been different than some. While important people with titles were pouring accolades on Dwight, he was recognizing all of the people who helped him achieve his dreams. He talked about his employees most fondly. Dwight expressed that, without all of those people who did the hard, daily work, Shelter Systems couldn’t exist. Dwight had inspired each of them to be the best they could be. Each employee who I spoke with cared about Shelter Systems and cared deeply for Dwight. Carl Schoening, Jason Blenker, Gary Gannon, Cody Nusbaum, Dwight Hikel, and Stan Sias PHONE: 800-289-5627
Last week I attended the memorial service for Dwight. It was an event Dwight would have been proud of. The room was filled with friends, family, employees,
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