Date: Tue 03-Mar-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: DOTTIE

Quick Words:

snapshot-Clark-Kathan-3rd

Full Text:

SNAPSHOT: CLARK KATHAN III

Occupation: Supervisor of maintenance at Edmond Town Hall. I started part-time

last June but became full time on the first of February. While I was

part-time, I also worked as a custodian at Branchville Elementary School in

Ridgefield. But I've done a lot of other things over the years. I had my own

upholstery business, I operated my own cleaning service from 1974 to 1990, as

well as working for companies like Pitney Bowes. I went to school for five

years for heating and air conditioning.

How long in Newtown: I've lived in Sandy Hook on Hilldale Drive for 12 years.

Family: My wife, Shirley, who works for Pitney Bowes in Newtown. She has four

grown children, and I have three. We have quite a few grandchildren, seven of

them live in this area including a grandson who plays football for WestConn.

Pets: We have a one-year-old black Lab named Lacey who is the apple of our

eye. We also have an eight-year-old German shepherd, Sasha, who adopted Lacey

just like she was her mother. Both dogs are as smart as they come. They do

lots of tricks.

Hobbies: I do woodworking, making mostly small pieces of Shaker (style)

furniture like shelves with pegs for coats, a deacon's bench, quilt racks,

kids' rocking chairs, bunk beds. I like to go to tag sales. I play golf but I

don't get much opportunity to do it. I'm just one step above a beginner; I

have a 22 handicap. I also like to bowl and bowled in a Clairol league for

years.

Organizations: I belong to a national woodworker's association and get all the

publications. I like to read "how-to" books and watch all the television shows

like This Old House and Yankee Workshop. I also was a volunteer firefighter

for six years with the Springdale Fire Department, and I was an EMT (Emergency

Medical Technician) and an ambulance driver.

Change in the town: The traffic. There's a lot more of it.

Personal philosophy: I like to do things right. I'd like to leave a mark

saying that I was here. That's why I like working in this old building -- it's

a challenge that lets me use the expertise I've developed over the years to

keep everything operating here. I want to keep learning because the world is

always changing: new equipment -- computerized heating systems,

energy-efficient lighting systems -- new products, better ways of doing

things.

I had a flat tire in New Hampshire once and someone stopped to help me. He

wouldn't take any money, he just told me that when I see someone who needs

help, help them and ask them to do the same. That's what I try to do.