08/30/2025
Friends,
Today was officially our dear friend Richard Stipes last day to work. His first job for SNU was around 1980 and he has been a contractor for SNU since the mid 1980s. But not just any contractor or vendor. Richard has been a servant leader for his team and an amazing example for our Facilities team. Every job he did, he did to fulfill Colossians 3:23, to do his best, not just for men, but to God. He is a master craftsman and refused to deliver anything but excellent workmanship in every project he was a part of. In fact, you are hard pressed to find any etchings into wet concrete around SNU because Richard would stand guard over every concrete project he did to make sure it did not get damaged by vandals looking to leave "their legacy", on his handiwork.
I used him as an illustration for my Facilities team often to "hurry every chance you get", as my dad would say. Because of Richard's sense of urgency to get each job done and his conscientiousness to give SNU value for each hour he worked, you would often see him jogging every place he went. If he had to "run back to the truck or to the shop for a tool", he would literally run back to the truck or shop!
Richard's fingerprints are on so many projects at SNU, and he did his work for us over the years by just "time and materials", which saved SNU countless thousands of dollars and stretched our dollars to add so much more value to our campus.
His mentorship has also been seen in the lives of several SNU students he employed over the years, who learned the value of hard work and and great work ethic.
We are planning a retirement reception to honor him for his years of service, Friday, September 12th, at 9:30am in the Commons Heritage room. Please join us in honoring this great, quiet, and humble man who has done so much for us.
