Two veteran-owned businesses — AGR Boards and Hammer’d Metal Works — ran a booth at the Fulton Street Fair for the first time Friday.
Not only did they run a booth at the street fair for the first time, but Tony and Laura Rachatellelle (owners of AGR Boards) and James Walters (owner of Hammer’d Metal Works) also served in the Army National Guard together.
Rachatellelle and his wife Laura operate AGR Boards out of their home in Columbia near Lake of the Woods.
After Tony and Laura were medically discharged from the Army National Guard, Tony decided to start making woodworking designs.
“(I started) as a hobby with one cutting board that I built because I built the curve,” Tony Rachatellelle said. “And, of course, we have a ton at home.”
“(Laura) said she didn’t really need it and somebody else wanted it. I just kind of learned from there,” he added with a laugh.
For Tony, the practice of woodworking is something he was familiar with as someone who grew up in construction.
“It’s just a hobby,” Tony Rachatellelle said. “… I like watching it come to life.”
From Cardinals to Royals to veteran designs, AGR Boards had a plethora of pieces showcased at the street fair.
“Anything that you can think of, (Tony) can create,” Laura Rachatellelle said. “It’s good for him because he’s retired. He gets to be a stay-at-home dad while I work. The roles are reversed, so it’s nice.”
Another veteran with a craftsman’s hand is Walters, who is the owner of Hammer’d Metal Workers, which is operated out of his home in Ashland. He offered loads of designs for folks walking down the brick streets in Fulton.
“So kind of any artwork or house, home-decor stuff,” Walters said. “We do sports signs, but a lot of what we do are monograms. We also do some fire rings and fire pits for people. And then all of our signs that go in the house, they can be inside or outside. They’re all powder-coated, so we can do about just about any color for anybody.”
Three years ago, Walters picked up the hobby of metalworking, self-teaching himself the practice.
“So, I’ve retired out of the Army (National Guard) for about 32 years, my wife said I had to do something or I was gonna drive her crazy,” Walters said. “I decided to get into metal works and just have fun with it.”
The pieces Walters was most proud of making are the military designs. Displayed on each of them is the symbol for one of the military branches. Walters has custom-made his military designs to include a person’s name in the final product.
“A lot of those guys, it kind of brings back memories from when they served,” Walters said. “They get to go hang it on their wall, so that was really nice.”
AGR Boards and Hammer’d Metal Works will continue running their booths at the Fulton Street Fair today.
The Rachatelles and Walters can be reached by phone or through Facebook.
AGR Boards’ number is (573) 489-1244 and its Facebook page is www.facebook.com/AGR.Broads.
Hammer’d Metal Works’ number is (573) 291-7075 and its Facebook link is www.facebook.com/HammerdMetalWorks.
National Guard Veteran James Walters (owner of Hammer’d Metal Works) picked up metalworking about three years ago and takes pride in creating pieces inspired by the military. This weekend was the first time he had a booth at the Fulton Street Fair. (FULTON SUN/ROBBY CAMPBELL PHOTO)
Tony and Laura Rachatellelle (owners of AGR Boards) served in the Army National Guard together and have since started a woodworking business. This weekend was the first time they had a booth at the Fulton Street Fair. (FULTON SUN PHOTO/ROBBY CAMPBELL)