Kelly Lawton, CRPM, CLC has been a Lead Carpenter for Degnan Design-Build-Remodel since 2017. Kelly has shared some personal thoughts with all of us!

Tell us about your hobbies:  Golf is something I picked up after high school and it has turned into one of my favorite activities. I enjoy hiking with my family and with the boy scouts. Photography has been a hobby of mine since I was in middle school, and my favorite thing to photograph is sunrises and sunsets. 

Fishing has probably been the hobby that I have done the longest. As a kid, I would spend hours on the shore fishing. Shortly after I started working for the company, I won a chartered salmon fishing trip through one of our suppliers. Noelle, Abe, PJ, and I along with another friend spend an afternoon catching salmon on Lake Michigan. It has been my favorite fishing excursion. It’s definitely something I want to do again sometime. 

What are your passions? Woodworking is something I have started doing in the past few years and now it is something I am passionate about. My passion project has been my patio at my house. I built a pergola, we put in a perennial garden and this year for Father's day I got a 14' outdoors theater system. My next addition will be a putting green. I love our patio, it is my favorite place to hang out!

Where did you grow up? I grew up in Black Earth, and I attended Wisconsin Heights High School. Growing up in that small town, the main thing we did was play baseball. When I was 12 and 13 our baseball team won the state championship, twice! We played in the regional championships, when I was 12 we traveled to Ohio, and 13 was in Kentucky. My highlight was in the 13-year-old Regionals I was named team MVP in one of the games. I also played basketball and football. 

Share your education and degrees: I attended Madison Area Technical College in the Marketing Program, and I’m also a NARI Certified Remodeling Project Manager (CRPM)

Tell us about your family: My wife Noelle and I have been married for 20 years. We have two children, our son Sawyer is 16 and our daughter Evie is 14. Noelle works for the University of Wisconsin for the College of Engineering, and she has been working for the University for over 20 years. She also has a passion for gardening. Sawyer is a Junior in High School and has a passion for music: he plays the drums and guitar. He is also a Boy Scout and is working on earning his Eagle Scout. Evie is a Freshman in High School. She is a black belt in karate and has a love for animals. We have a 3-year-old small poodle mix rescue named Chewy.

Do you have any heroes? Growing up my hero was Michael Jordan, I wanted to be like Mike. As I have gotten older, I realized my true hero is my Father, Dale Lawton. He was a  coach for me in sports as a child and was also my scout leader as well. Now that I am a father I have found myself doing the same. I have been a coach for both Sawyer and Evie when they were younger and have been a scout leader for over 10 years now. He taught me how important it is to be involved in your children's lives. Not only is he an amazing father but he is also an amazing man. He served our country for 41 years and retired as a Commander in the United States Navy. As a child, I resented the Navy because I knew it as the thing that took my dad away from us at times. At the time I didn't understand the sacrifice that my dad was making for our country. Now all I see is a true hero, someone I look up to every day!

What are you proud of? I am most proud of my family, they are kind, loving, and talented people that inspire me every day. I am also proud of the garden I built for Noelle, she has always wanted a garden and in 2020 I built her dream garden. I love to see how happy she is during gardening season. 

Do you have a favorite quote? "Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation. Your character is what you really are while your reputation is merely what others think of you." - John Wooden, one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time. 

This is so true, many people really care about what others think of them that they forget who they really are. 

Do you have a favorite saying?  "Don't settle for being in your comfort zone, strive to make yourself a better person every day." This is something I truly believe, if you are not happy then make a change. After 25 years of staying in my comfort zone, I decided to make a career change. It was the best decision I could have ever made for my career. I left behind a toxic environment and joined one that feels like a family. In the past four years, I have learned so much, the training that I have received is unbelievable. I continue to grow as a Lead Carpenter and as a person. Joining The Degnan Design-Build-Remodel team is one of the best decisions I have ever made!

What’s your favorite movie? Iron Man! I am a big fan of all of the MCU films but the original Iron Man is my favorite. 

What about TV shows? Big Bang Theory is, in my mind, probably the funniest TV series of all time. I love movies, if I had a choice to watch a TV or a movie I would pick  a movie every time.

Do you like to travel? Where have you been? I love to visit National Parks. My favorite vacation was to the Great Smoky Mountains.  I loved exploring the waterfalls! The next National Parks on our list to travel to are Acadia in Maine and Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. Our family also loves Florida, Sanibel Island and Disney World are our favorite Florida destinations. We plan to go back next year.

My dream vacation is to Ireland, Noelle and I hope to make it there for our 30th anniversary. I also hope to make it to Hawaii someday. I really want to see Pearl Harbor since my dad was stationed there so many times in the Navy.

You’re welcome to share your values, church, or faith: I am a devoted Catholic, a member of St. Olaf Catholic Church. I love our savior Jesus Christ. I am also a religious education teacher.

What type of music do you listen to? What did you listen to in the past? My favorite music is 70's and 80's Rock, I also enjoy 90's alternative and country music. As a kid, I listened to rap music, and I was the annoying kid with the loud music you could hear coming a mile away.

Are you an artist or craftsman? I love woodworking and building furniture. My favorite piece I have built is a country-style sideboard table.  We use it as a coffee bar in our kitchen.

What’s your favorite sport? My favorite sport is golf, it is something that I hope to be able to enjoy for the rest of my life with my kids. It is very relaxing and enjoyable to be able to take a half-day and hit the links.

What are some awards & achievements? I think one of my greatest achievements is being a Scoutmaster in Boy Scouts. I have been able to mentor scouts and help shape their lives. So far I have been awarded four mentor pins by scouts when they have earned their Eagle Scout rank. To me this is a great honor, it is a reminder that what I am doing has meaning and is important to them. Also, it has been a great opportunity to spend time with Sawyer, as we have enjoyed many camp outings together. 

What’s the scariest moment of your life? When I was a kid I was attacked by a wolf. My grandma had a dog that a wolf had befriended. I had gone out to feed the dog and the wolf came out of nowhere and chased me. Just as it reached me and clawed my back, my grandma came out and scared it away.

Any final thoughts? Coach Wooden's Pyramid of Success is one of my favorite books. It is a book about his system for success that his players bought into to win 10 National Championships in a 12 year period. Not only does it work in basketball but it is also a philosophy for living daily life that I reference. My other favorite book is How To Win Friends and Influence People. This book is not about winning friends but understanding people. I have read it five times and will continue to read it. It has changed my life when it comes to relationships and understanding others.

Next: Meet Jon Edwards, Remodeling Carpenter
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