Ultimately, his family moved, and his father’s transition to construction prepared Chris for his current role. “When my dad set down roots in Newton, he wasn’t building power stations anymore, so he went to work contracting, building houses,” shares Chris. He adds, “I was on roofs in sixth and seventh grade. I was young when I cut my teeth in construction. I’ve built a lot of houses in this county.”

 

Today, Chris leads a team of three responsible for maintaining the district’s buildings and grounds. A 1995 Jasper County High School graduate, he also coaches the fishing program, a team he founded in 2009.

 

While he and his staff do everything from fixing desks to maintaining the baseball and football fields, his passion is remodeling. Recently his team has run electrical work, framed dry walling, set cabinets, and painted. He says, “When I walk into a building you’ve just remodeled, I take pride in seeing the change.”

 

He adds, “Every day in this job, something different pops up. You must be creative when you’re working on 1928 model buildings. You must be creative in how you go about things. You never do the same thing twice. It’s not monotonous at all.”

 

Chris also coaches the high school’s fishing team, a position he was asked to consider founding in 2009. At the time, fishing teams were rare and just starting to build steam. The principal recognized Chris’ passion and asked if he’d lead Jasper County as they founded a team. For years the program was self-funded and voluntary. But it’s been a raging success, leading to multiple college scholarships.

 

Chris beams while sharing, “It’s been very rewarding to me since day one. Some of the kids take and run with it, and others, you teach them the basics, and they can eat fish for life. Some have really taken it to the next level and are competing at really high levels. I’m excited to have been a part of giving them that opportunity.

 

Just like his father before him, Chris is proud of the community he calls home. He considers Jasper County a town where you can’t go to the grocery store without getting lost in conversation with your neighbors and appreciates the first-name nature of the area, suggesting that when someone needs something, everyone’s ready to pitch in, many return the favor for a time when the individual in need did the same for them.

 

He also loves to see the progress, sharing, “It’s rewarding to return to where I graduated. I can use what skills I have to make the place better. Most of the folks I work with I went to school with. It’s gratifying to me to come back to work at a stable job close to home in a great community.”

 

He closes our conversation with one of the same simple truths that defined his childhood. “As long as I got kids in school, this is where they belong, in Jasper County.