Founder and owner of Pioneer Millworks, J. Ohhhh plays as hard as he works - on a sunny Friday lunch hour you'll often find him tooling down the muddy inclines of Victor's single track. On the home front, Jonathan enjoys the craziness of family life with witty Sierra beginning adulthood on the west coast, adventurous & quizzical Jake River chasing after Dexter-the-dog and the ever-patient Maxine who manages to keep them all in health, in love and in line.
A transplant from across the pond, Martin’s adept at keeping the boat going and crew in line - he’s been a rowing coach for many of the area high schools. He and wife Lisa traveled the world for years prior to settling down. Good thing, now with three kids under the age of 4, travel is a distant memory.
Jered started with us in 1997 and is an avid fisherman, railroad buff, drummer, and Dad. He and wife Jamie enjoy a good weekend or two around the campfire in the summer with their two boys exploring the nature of fireflies. With a BFA in Interior Design, he helps customers navigate our myriad choices of flooring and millwork products.
Roblyn is the newest member of our sales team. With a degree and loads of experience in residential and commercial interior design, a background in fine tile, and an intense love of remodeling, Roblyn is a favorite among our pro design clients and homeowners. Walking the talk, Roblyn makes a habit of updating her home, over and over again. In between she spends time with Rocco, the sweetest, mean-looking dog ever, reads any book she can grab, and laughs at her cats, Mike and Francis.
Michele is a veteran of the days when we were a tiny little operation in Shortsville. She's still with us, though often out of the office digging through a ramshackle building talking the value of timbers with demo-guys. In addition to buying wood, she manages our wholesale sales, and our barn crew. Michele's most happy, however, spending her time with her two beautiful daughters, her guitar riffing son Evan & her Remington 1100, given to her by her beloved Dan.
Iain joined us as a member of the shop before assuming his duties as marketing manager, and now he's leading our west coast flooring and timber frame team. Prior to being a hewer of wood, he futzed around as a guide & outfitter after a longish spell as an infantry officer. Things that push his buttons include general outdoor stuff such as whitewater canoeing and archery, as well as crashing insanely fast motorcycles. If you're on the west coast, drop Iain a line.
Don’t let Rick’s gruff exterior and coach’s voice fool you – this Scout Master, youth football coach, amateur sports photographer, golfer, and proud dad of a Marine is the guy we go to when stuff needs to get done. In his past life he was a football star at Alfred University. A team member for well over 10 years, he keeps the mill running smoothly and can identify just about any wood species at a glance.
Aileen (that's 'aye-lean' not 'eye-lean') is one classy lady. She handles all shipping with unflappable ease and a smile. You may even hear her voice when you call in.
Jason, Kurt and Ron spend their time around regional barns investigating the contents and evaluating their worth in wood. They've often been captured on film as siding harvesters, honey gatherers, amateur art collectors, arm wrestlers, or trying to make their way into the latest PBS documentary. A note on barn rescue: If a barn or agricultural building can be saved and left in place, it should, and we're happy to make that recommendation. Unfortunately, time, changes to farming methods and so much more often conspire to suggest other uses for great old barns, otherwise they fall in rot and abandonment. If you know of a building that may be at the end of its life, call us at the Pioneer Millworks office in Farmington, NY or email us.
Alex and Josh have the task of having to sort and categorize the timbers that come into our yard. [Not an easy job when consider the 9 acres of timbers these guys call their office.] Amazingly gifted in their ability to identify wood species, they can spot a quality timber from 300 feet, inform you on the latest-coolest-hip-musician and create and produce movies, all from a moving forklift. Their latest production, "Woody" is a hysterically funny tutorial on wood identification. To see it, visit the Pioneer Millworks' YouTube channel.
What to say about this motley crew? They're a tough buncha' guys, who work in the cold & the humidity to pull the metal oddities out of the timbers we buy from across the country. They may seem at first rough, but either the close quarters they work in or the team work it takes to do what they do has softened their dispositions to that of an amiable lot.
Gnarly timbers in, clean timbers out. Brady, TJ and Carl run some of the biggest bandsaws in the industry, and do so with skill and dedication to quality. A love of showing off the latest pics of the kids, a jam session on the weekends, and the good natured patience it takes to coax the balance of grade and story from each timber they encounter.
James, Eric, Cal, Steve and John are the guys who take timbers and turn them into blanks for the moulder crew to mill into the flooring you love. They're the ones who decide which grade which board belongs in, they cut out defects, they feed the hog, they play in bands, they fish, they joke, they make for a pretty entertaining bunch.
It's just board stock until Scott, Jeff, Dave and Armando take it and turn it into fabulous tongue and groove flooring, or any of the many custom and standard molding profiles we can turn out. Thanks to these precision-minded woodworkers, professional installers and homeowners alike sing their praises noting the quality of the fit. An important feature when you're paying your installer by the hour, or looking to finish your floor quickly.
When Jennifer isn't lurking in the sample rack - you'll find her pouring over the latest industry trends, figures, campaigns and guerrillas [advertising, not Primates]. Inspired by the curiosity of her three boys, her husband Will's rock star musings and the writings of Seth Godin, it's only on the crystal slopes of Hunt Hollow that her body gets to catch up with the pace of her creativity.
Craig joined us in January '08, after a spell of freelance work. A man of many talents, he's at his best when immersed in the world of colors, shapes & typography, pulling together the elements of design to make our stuff look groovy. If you have any comments about this site, let him know. Outside of work, he's a rock star, (alternative rock) and a Bob Villa wanna be, working tirelessly on his new home. His roots in the upstate NY soil are a little deeper, as he and wife Kathryn had their first child Owen earlier this year.
After a good gallop across the countryside on her horse, Megan can be found putting her creativity and multitasking abilities to work in the office. A stickler for making things happen accurately and on time, the only place she lets things slide is at home with her husband. You might hear Megan's voice when you give us a call, but be warned, if you ask about her horse you're in for at least a half hour conversation.
Karen is our Finance Manager and although she tries to project the personality of a pit bull, once you get to know her she's actually all warm & fuzzy. Grandchildren, amateur dramatics, boating and her duties as a Rotarian round out her time when she's not in the finance office.
As a jewelry artist - Beth knows that the perfect solution is all in the details which is what makes her impeccable in her role in the Finance Department. A busy mother of four teenagers - Beth and her husband Mark try to only raise their voices on the playing fields as they cheer each kid in soccer, football or lacrosse.
What could be better than an enthusiastic doggie greeting? If you visit in NY you'll likely be greeted by Charlie, Betty, Henry or Sprocket. Charlie is our official office greeter. Guests are met by a wet nose against their hands, his big brown eyes and constantly wagging tail. While visiting us in the office has to be one of Charlie's favorite things (who wouldn't like getting pet and treats from everyone!) he also loves chasing his red Frisbee.
Dexter is a Brittany who was whisked across the country by kind foster owners to start a new life in western NY. Recently, Dexter, family (and Annie Brown the cat) relocated to the west coast. He's a big-hearted sort of a guy who doesn't have a mean bone in his body. He'll greet you with high energy in the west coast office or at the Vermont Street Project.
