The story of the last lead holder

The story of the last lead holder

         Back in the summer of 1979, a project that started off as an attempt by his High School Drafting Teacher to keep him from cutting class, actually put Richard Deatherage on the path to his career.

         Recognizing Richard's boredom with remedial drafting, the Teacher instead had Deatherage draft and design a new custom home plan for a friend while he was in detention. The plans turned out to be accepted by the local building department and by the tender age of sixteen, Deatherage had design and drafted his first home and there was no looking back.

         This was only the first in a line of fortuitous circumstances that shot Deatherage to the top of the Sacramento areas building industry in the early eighties. He interned for the remainder of High School from 1980 through 1981 with a local Architect, Robert Schafer & Associates, Through the Regional Occupation Program (ROP) at San Juan high school, in Citrus Heights, Ca.,

         Honing his drafting skills under the Architects instructions, he helped to draft an Apartment Complex, a tilt up Commercial office building and the commercial office spaces with in. As well as the refinishes of the buildings in Cal Expo. He also entered a Custom Home design at the California State Fair in the Architectural exhibit and won the Best of Show in the local high school competitions.

         After graduation in 1981, he attended summer classes at Sierra College in Rocklin, Ca. Richard wanted to become an Architect but, soon found Collage to be to expensive and repetitive from what he had already archived as an intern. Repeating his old High School habits of cutting classes, he decided Collage was not for him. Dropping out, he decided to go out and learn to build from the ground up.

         Construction was booming and Richard searched out a local builder that was hiring. He started working with very little experience as a Finish Carpenter for John Mourier Construction and was thrown into the chaos of a vary fast pace moving Residential Development. While enjoying such hands-on experience, Deatherage wasn't about to let his creative side go to waste.

         He persuaded the builder to give him a chance to Draft a Custom Home plan while still being an interior finish carpenter in the field. The chance came one day while Richard was finishing the interior finishes of the builders Custom Home in Sea Ranch, Ca. 

         Richard was called out from the construction fields, to the office to start drafting a Custom Home, this was the chance he was waiting for. 

      After that design, Richard was awarded with his ambitions in the late winter of 1982.

         While most Architectural students his age were starting Collage. Richard Deatherage had achieved his Architectural Dreams, by becoming the youngest Project Coordinator / Architectural Draftsman in the State of California's history by the age of 20.

         From 1982 through 1987, Richard was involved in the production of no fewer then two thousand homes, Drafting Master Plans for 12 Residential Developments and Designing many Custom Homes through-out Northern California in five short years.

         In meetings with other large Developers in the area, through business land transactions. Richard was connected to some of the Sacramento Valley's largest Land Developers of the day. Those meetings turned into curiosity session's of his accomplishments and how he got to be where he was at such a young age?

         With the proper business climate, the perfect storm of the economic boom of the mid 80's and with the encouragement he received from a local Developer, Don McCormick. Deatherage had the confidence and experience necessary to branch out on his own.

         At the age of 24, Richard started his own drafting service, designing master plans for Don McCormick and other builders, through out Northern California. Seeing many more of his designs built...all at a time when drafting was still being done by hand, on vellum paper, with a lead drafting pencil.....

      In 2009, Richard Designed and Drafted his last Custom Home, never to be built due to the recession. Ending a 30 year run as one of the last Lead holders of his generation. 

     With his drafting career at an end, Richard had to reinvent him self to find work to support his family and to save his home. It took 14 months, but he persisted to find a job as a finish carpenter, going back in time to the days of his youth, gave him the strength to continue on ...putting his old nail bags back on reminded him of his story at the start of his construction career, enjoying being a carpenter once again. 

     As the years went by Richard worked his way up to be a construction superintendent for large builders, building projects as large as 26 million in expense throughout Washington, Oregon, Nevada and California. 

     In 2018, after the “Camp fire” in Paradise, California; Richard pledged to an old friend after he and his twin daughters lost each of there individual homes ...to volunteer and draft by hand, on vellum paper, with a lead drafting pencil, one last time. His buddy bought a home that survived the fire nearby, with one of his daughters accepting Richard’s offer, They received their building permit in April of 2020 and they are rebuilding today......

    Before the covid - 19 crises started, Richard found himself unemployed once again before the break out began, but found a job the next week, But once the virus started the company that was going to hire Richard, had there project put on hold with Richard having to go on unemployment. Pulling strength from his past experience to never give up, he continued looking for work as the lock down of our county began. For the next three months Richard was locked down until he found a company that was hiring. He starts a new project on June 1st in Northern California. 

     Pulling strength from his past lifetime of experiences in the construction trades, Richard once again continues on with life’s up‘s and down’s as we all do. Today Richard suggest to help volunteer in your local area to help others in this time of need. With that help, you will find the leads to survive, be feed and find shelter in what is yet to come from the fall out from the virus and the unknown furture we all face today. 

Today 5-29-2020 Richards book “The Last Lead Holders-quest for fulfillment” was self published and can be read on Reedsy today.