The next time I need an example for my students of what it means to be resilient, I will tell them about a little company in North Collins, NY…

Despite their incredible loss Thursday, Timberbuilt wasted no time finding a place to set up and get back to work. By Friday morning – less than 24 hours after they shared the news about the fire that destroyed their shop and office – they announced they had already relocated nearby:

Saturday morning brought a call from Adam L. telling us they expect to receive new timbers for our project this Wednesday or Thursday and they’ll begin cutting them right away. (more…)

Of all the things we might have anticipated going wrong with our build, I suspect the news we received this morning would not be on the list.

Our timbers are ashes.

A massive fire at Timberbuilt’s shop in North Collins, NY early this morning destroyed the entire building. Inside was a lot of wood, including the timbers for our home that were to be shipped in time to begin our main structure on March 1.

The poor folks at Timberbuilt also lost their very nifty and green office, which George took pride in showing us last summer.

According to news reports, the fire was called in just after 3 a.m. Less than six hours later, Adam Lincoln, the company’s “logistics guy,” was on the phone with John to deliver the news. He told John he’d already made calls to their timber supplier to confirm wood was available to begin again on our project, and he’d contacted another company to put a hold on delivering the structural insulated panels that will comprise our roof and exterior walls.

As soon as they find an alternate location to work, Timberbuilt will be back on the job and we’ll be able to revise our building schedule.

Those guys are amazing to begin with. In a crisis? Wow. (more…)