Employees Category: First Group

ABOUT BROOKE

Brooke joined Schrader and Company in 2017 after earning her BFA in Interior Design from Cazenovia College. As an integral part of our team, she helped establish and grow our Design Department, contributing to the development of the systems and processes that define our operations today. With a passion for creative problem-solving, Brooke thrives on the challenge of space planning, always striving to deliver tailored solutions that meet her clients’ unique needs. Her dedication to her craft is matched by her commitment to providing clients with an enjoyable collaborative design experience.

ON HER OWN TIME

• Is an Adirondack 46er and avid outdoors enthusiast, she can often be found hiking, exercising, or simply enjoying nature. At home, she tends to her backyard chickens and ducks, embracing her love for animals and outdoor life.
• Values time with family and friends, especially her husband and their dog, Wiley.
• Enjoys life’s simple pleasures, including reading, discovering new places, and exploring the world’s natural wonders.
• Is constantly curious, with a thirst for learning, she is always open to new ideas and experiences.

About Leigh

Leigh followed the longest path to get here, that aside, we are certainly happy she decided to join our family, expand our family, and bring her talents to make the lives of our employees and their families lives a little more fun or a little less complicated.

On her own time

• Wife and mother.
• Member of West Glenville Volunteer Fire Department Auxilliary.
• Active Member of the Glendaal Elementary School PTA.
• Saratoga County 4-H Horse Program Volunteer and Mentor.
• Loves traveling to the Florida Keys and Martha’s Vineyard with her family.

ABOUT SILAS

Silas joined the company in 2009 in a formal commitment. This followed a lifetime of working in and around the company, traveling with his father to check out job sites, and spending Saturdays and summer breaks learning the ins and outs of the business.

Silas’s years of hands-on carpentry and project management experience uniquely qualify him to oversee our production systems, maintain safety and quality standards, and manage the challenges of scheduling, as well as budgeting and billing. One of Silas’s most important responsibilities is to collaborate with suppliers, independent contractors, and our own in-house production team to ensure seamless communication and successful long-term relationships. Silas is a consistent presence on job sites, interacting with clients, supporting the crew and ensuring a job well done from construction start to finish.

ON HIS OWN TIME

• Proud husband and father
• Major in the United States Marine Corp Reserves
• President nominee of Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Rotary
• Enjoys the outdoors, hiking with his two children, saltwater fishing in the Florida Keys, and traveling with family (dog included)

About Christy

Christy joined the Company in 1976, and has been assigned numerous responsibilities since then, some of which required specific product, safety, or medical training, or special licensing, and all required good judgment. Some examples:

1. As a mason’s laborer she saved the life of a young boy attacked by a large dog on a hot & humid August day only to be run into by the arriving ambulance as first aid was being applied to her punctured arms and hands.
2. She worked as a roofer installing garage roof shingles when 6 months pregnant with her first child
3. She grouted ceramic tile in bathrooms at night so as to not disturb the other tradesmen during their normal work day.
4. Christy was given charge of the dump runs to the Lake Placid dump when we worked in that area.
5. She was selected and became a licensed real estate agent so we had our own representation when buying or selling real estate.
6. On the first house we built, Christy’s labor was traded to the septic system installation contractor when his laborer did not show up for work.

Christy has done everything asked of her the past 50 plus years to the benefit of the company and the people who earn their living there. As the CFO her work output directly and immediately affects every person in the organization.

On her own time

• Loves the snow. Enjoys knitting, quilting and reading.
• Is having a blast with her 6 grandchildren!
• Dedicated NY Giants fan.
• Past Commissioner for the West Charlton Fire District, and District Secretary.
• Past Commissioner for the West Glenville Fire District.
• Past Volunteer First Responder, Firefighter (inactive) for the West Charlton Fire Dept.
• Current Treasurer for the Glenville Cemetery Association

About Peter

If you were to ask of Peter, “so what’s a Founder”, or “what does a Founder do anyway”? One response as likely as any other might first notice him discretely peering over one shoulder, and then even more covertly peeking over the other as he edged in closer and in a whisper declared “anything he wants to”.

Peter is one who openly credits the stabilizing influence humor has brought to his life. He considers it to be a gift to be able to recognize the absurdity in some of the situations we find ourselves tangled up in. Once we discover and have a little perspective, this perspective exposes the silliness of taking ourselves too seriously. This was a huge discovery for Peter.

A Founder may do anything he wants to…as long as it offends no one, as long as it matches the viewpoint of his client base, as long as he is not embarrassing anyone, and as long as he does not overstay his welcome.

On behalf of all the talented people who have inserted effort into creating and enhancing this site for your enjoyment, this Founder wishes you a visit that inspires.    

On his own time

• He is enjoying the irony of experiencing long-held personal beliefs and opinions “adjusting themselves” to fresher perspectives as he continues to age.
• Likes to read.
• Likes playing any competitive game with family or friends, loves the laughter.
• One of his most coveted pursuits is everything to do with firewood. The sense of order in a neatly stacked chord of wood, the feeling of self-sufficiency by burning wood for the family home, keeping home & hearth safe and warm, causing a section of the forest to be healthier by selectively cutting damaged or diseased trees, and the spiritual uplift that comes from simply being out in nature’s wonderful space is a lasting gift.
• Doing any activity or doing nothing, as long as it is with my family. That is special.

About John

John joined the company in 2002 and continues steady and sure, to improve his skill. He is a reliable producer, assembler, and installer of blemish free cabinetry and he does this, it seems, almost effortlessly. John is a pleasure to watch when he is applying his skills to fabricate cabinetry. John is one of those quiet, gentlemanly like persons who always appear to be moving, but without the cloud of dust, and there, at the end of the work day have amassed a mound of exquisite finished cabinet products. How does he do that?

On his own time

• He enjoys time spent with his wife and five grandchildren.
• Hunting, fishing, boating, camping and riding his motorcycle are high on his list of things to do.
• Fan of the NY Giants and NY Rangers.
• John cheers for the Yankees (or anyone who beats the Red Sox).

About Robert

Robert joined the company in 1977. This would be his first job after graduating from High School (and decades later it still is). Robert brings with him to his work each day the power to influence and shape the culture of the company. He has derived immense satisfaction by using the capabilities of the cabinet shop facility, it’s machinery and tooling, and the skills he has learned over years of hands-on shop experience to create a multitude of magnificent cabinetry and fine furniture for family and friends and colleagues and clients. This is his legacy.

On his own time

• Next to his love of going to work each day, it is his Family who bring him the most satisfaction, joy, and comfort.
• Spending his available time at home and in the woods on his property is and has been one of his few passions, it is an opportunity for him to recharge, daily.
• Loves Adirondack hiking and camping and tandem cycling with his wife. During summer months you may find him on one of his most revered Adirondack hideaways located in the Schroon River area.

About Jeremiah

Jeremiah joined the company in 2002. He is a standout perfectionist among a whole company of perfectionists, and he is a pace setter for defining the level of quality and attention to fine detail selected on any particular project. In addition to crafting beautiful spaces for clients, Jeremiah approaches his projects with extreme care and sensitivity to the clients home and possessions. Although not particularly recommended, it’s often a running joke that you can eat off the floor of Jeremiah’s work site.

On his own time

• Born in Maine and always eager to visit back home as often as practical.
• Outdoor activities with wife and daughter and their dog.
• Enjoys camping, hiking, and nordic skiing.

About Val

Val joined the company in 1993. He has the mind of an accomplished engineer who is able to solve complex riddles previously thought understandable only to those few gifted…. well…. it just seems like there is nothing that he can’t build. With a “whatever it takes to get the job done” approach, Val sets the standard for some of our up and coming leaders.

On his own time

• A volunteer in support of the area Boy Scouts for several years, these Scouts proudly hold many earned awards for achievements.
• Avid Sportsman and Outdoorsman, if you want to find him in the summer months look for him in the Schroon Lake area, and if you can’t see him, wait a moment and you might hear him – driving his current favorite fast boat.
• Loves the Adirondacks – enjoys camping, fishing, and hiking with his family.
• Restores antique boat motors (outboards).

ABOUT BEN

Ben’s introduction to Schrader and Company occurred during his college years, when his friend Silas, a member of the company’s founding family, recruited him for a part-time position. It was during these most formative years that Ben developed a keen interest in learning more about the rigors of leading a small business.

After graduating from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Ben spent 2 years working for a commercial construction company in Boston.  Although a great experience, the appeal of small business leadership and the opportunity to plant roots in upstate NY was just too strong.  Ben rejoined Schrader and Company full time in 2004.

Today Ben ensures that the company pipeline is healthy, that our design and project planning systems are effective and efficient, and that the professionals who make this company what it is, have the support and “tools” they need to do their jobs well.  Ben and Silas together set the vision and long-term strategy for the company and are committed every day to client satisfaction and future business success.

ON HIS OWN TIME

• Ben greatly enjoys reflecting back on the pre-kids era when he had many of his own hobbies. Now…
• He spends most of his time living vicariously through his two wonderful and highly active children. Always looking forward to the next sporting event, concert, play, scout event, and more.
• Ben relishes spending quality time with his wife but also enjoys partnering with her for all the crazy, demanding, and at times exhausting aspects of “adulting”.
• Ben enjoys music, travel, sipping a well made Old Fashion, camping, and volunteering.