Jeff Traxler glanced out of the lodge window and his eyes lit up as he saw two young hunters posing with their grandfather outside of the Club House. “Families frequently pose for pictures,” he said, “several generations, each person holding a pheasant.”
Chad Surprenant was born to be an engineer, according to his mother, Mary Jo. What he’s doing today as CEO and president of ISG (formerly I+S Group) is engineering the future, not only of the company, but also Greater Mankato.
Daryle Pomranke’s heart is in welding, but his eyes are on the future of his business, Winnebago Manufacturing Company in Blue Earth. The refocus from welding torch to financial statements began 37 years ago, after Pomranke was diagnosed with an astigmatism that prevented him from forging a career as a professional welder.
Brian Mathiowetz is a gambler. Instead of dice, he rolls with the weather. At the time of his Connect Business Magazine interview this summer, Mathiowetz Construction Company was halfway through a three-month contract to build two roundabouts in Mankato, despite excessive rain in June.
Five days after surviving a heart attack, Steve Melcher greets the Connect Business Magazine reporter with a handshake and credits his survival to exercise, a healthful diet, and divine intervention. His heredity gets the blame for the two plugged arteries that caused the attack. He said, “I’m the oldest of four boys, and they all have heart issues. Some have already had surgery.”
When a knitting machine breaks in Oregon, Mexico City, Quebec, Canada, or even Sweden, there’s a good likelihood it will be repaired in St. Peter. A little shop nestled in St. Peter’s historic district, Knit & Sew World, occupies the storefront at 119 South Minnesota Avenue.
Brian Benshoof, CEO of Mankato Rehabilitation Center, Inc., has been employed by the nonprofit organization for half of its 60-year history. His goal is to make MRCI the program of choice for clients and families seeking services and to educate the public about the variety and depth of MRCI’s programs and services.
Some people believe your junior high school dream career is your true destiny, that if your job history results in the fulfillment of that dream, you have achieved true success. Many of us happily settle for a related career, perhaps becoming a nurse instead of a veterinarian. For mortician Sue Nasinec, who owns Bruss-Heitner Funeral Homes in Wells and Bricelyn, there were no alternative career choices, not after she researched mortuary science for a seventh grade English class assignment.
We might call it the beginning of a construction empire, we could say the growth of a new generation of business owners, and there’s certainly no doubt it’s an example of the Midwestern work ethic paying off.
