|
By Lloyd Mackey
WHEN Ken Pesch and Ryan Politano started building a
business called Living Stones, some three years ago, they had more than one
motivation.
Pesch had built his skills in the paving stone field,
one which has become increasingly important in the landscape and
construction industry. Politano had been an assistant manager in a
supermarket.
But Pesch also had experienced problems with substance
abuse and addiction. So complex was the challenge that, with his wife
Rowena’s encouragement, he sought Christian-based rehabilitation.
He went, first, to Foundation House in Victoria; then,
for a year to Wagner Hills Farm, in Langley. The latter’s program was
so intensive that, for weeks at a time, he would have no contact with
Rowena – who, at the time of his rehab commitment, had been his wife
for just five months.
But he came out with his addiction under control. And
he had two desires: to build a biblically-based business; and to do it in a
way that would help his future employees and customers understand
addictions and their spiritual antidotes.
Through Rowena, Politano learned of Pesch’s
business hopes, and came on board. “Ken is the paving stones person;
I have the business background,” he says.
The name for the business – Living Stones –
came from an insight Pesch believes came from God, based on Exodus 31: 8,
9. That text refers to people with skills in the cutting and setting
(interlocking) of stones.
But the idea that the stones were living, Pesch
recalls, related to the understanding that people, themselves, are cut,
shaped and set together by the work of God in their lives, and by the
spiritual life he imparts.
Notes Pesch: “I need to remember, [this business]
is not my doing. It has involved a lot of people, some [recognition of]
truth, and the faithfulness of my wife and my business partner. And in all,
God is faithful.”
Continue article >>
|
As the business built, the men worked, usually with
various employees, from Victoria to Campbell River. They have reined in a
bit, now concentrating on the south Island.
Politano lives in Cobble Hill and Pesch in Duncan. They
both attend New Life Community Baptist Church in Duncan, where best-selling
author Mark Buchanan is pastor.
Pesch sees Living Stones as “not our business,
but the Lord’s – not just to make money, but to help other men
who are struggling with addictions.” The help comes through sharing
“what the Lord has done in our life.”
Some men struggle with identity crises, and the
tensions between making money and adhering to faith principles, Pesch
points out. The business allows himself and Politano to come alongside and
“train the guys.”
But he is careful to note that the spiritual emphasis
at Living Stones must enhance, rather than overshadow, the task of doing
good work, running the business properly and satisfying the customers.
“The idea is to do business and serve in a way
that makes a difference in people’s lives,” he says.
For more information call 250.746.5484.
May 2009
|
