We are fortunate to have many talented people working at Ideal Cabinets. Among those talented people is our Christiansburg Shop Manager and Master Carpenter, Jeff Mottesheard. Jeff has been with Ideal Cabinets for over 35 years. Ideal Cabinets is the only place that Jeff has ever worked. We are very proud of that fact. We think it says a lot about the kind of company that we are, and always hope to be.
Jeff started here as an apprentice one week after his high school graduation. He worked under his uncle, who was working at Ideal as a carpenter then. Jeff has grown in skill over his many years at Ideal to become a Master craftsman. Our Sales and Design staff enjoy sending him new designs to test his skill and challenge him, and he loves it. He says it is fun to work on producing new things for them, and the harder they make it, the more fun it is for him to try to plan a way to create it.
Jeff brings a lot of humor and joy wherever he goes, he has a friendly easygoing quality about him that makes people feel at ease. When asked what they like most about Jeff, his co-workers have a hard time coming up with just one thing. They all start laughing and recanting lots of their favorite stories. One said, “It is the simple things like how he always leaves smiley face notes on my computer screen, so I’ll have a good day. “Another said, “We can’t talk about what happens in the shop. What happens in the shop – stays in the shop.” Jeff always makes everyone feel welcome at Ideal, and he does his best to make you feel like you are part of the family.
Jeff may be a Master craftsman, and a friend to those he works with, but he is also many other things to many other people. He is a husband to his lovely wife Linda. He is a Sunday School Teacher to the children at his church. He is a friend to his co-workers, and he is a dependable person that people know they can count on, especially his family.
There is a quote by Louis Nizer that says, “A man who works with his hands is a laborer; a man who works with his hands and his brain is a craftsman; but a man who works with his hands, his brain, and his heart, is an artist.” We think that sums up our Jeff perfectly, because when it comes down to it, he is much more than a craftsman, he is an artist. He puts his heart into everything he does. We are glad that Jeff chose to be part of our Ideal family all those years ago, he has contributed more to the Ideal family than he will ever know. We continue to be grateful that he is part of our team.
