Silver Highlights

. At present Les demonstrates his art and has a gallery in the Branson Craft Mall in Branson, Missouri. In the late 1970's Les worked in the Texas Oilfields making big money but Les couldn't see this as being his career. During this time in the oilfields thieves were common, stealing anything that could be resold. Wanting to mark his tools and hardhat to discourage theft, Les inscribed his name and company logo on his aluminum hardhat. When other oilfield workers saw Les's hardhat, they actually wanted to pay Les to personalize their hardhats. Company men in big corporations were ordering 50 or more hats at a time as retirement and safety awards for their employees. So the sideline business became his career, and Les named his company Silver Highlights because of the silver color of the aluminum hardhats. Then the aluminum hardhats were ban because the metal was a conductor to electricity and they only made plastic hardhats. Les found a replacement for the hats and replaced flat sheets of Powder-coated Aluminum and Brass that could be framed for wall decor. After working with both metals, Les found that the brass outsold the aluminum. Brass became the primary base for Les's Artwork but Les kept the company name of Silver Highlights because of the history behind the development of the engravings. Les continued to sell his engravings at art shows on most weekends. Then in 1983 Les and his wife, Shronda, were invited to Branson, Missouri to display and sell his art seeing thousands of people each year. Through the ebb and flow of the retail market, Les has continued to grow as an artist creating jewelry and branching out into other art mediums. And God has brought Les full circle. Les is again able to buy Aluminum Hardhats and is creating Amazing pieces of art, which are being sold all over the world via the internet. (He is now engraving the hats again because of regulation changes in metal hardhats.) Realizing that his talent was from God, Les based his company on the Scripture Eccl. 9:10 that reads: "Whatever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might". This scripture reference is engraved on each piece of Les's artwork. Les is also a very talented musician and devotes time to LifeSong's praise band, loves computers and building them but not so much the repairing part, rides motorcycles, a Harley (he dreams), and loves and provides for his family.