{"id":1016,"date":"2018-09-03T22:52:56","date_gmt":"2018-09-04T02:52:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/?page_id=1016"},"modified":"2021-01-03T12:18:55","modified_gmt":"2021-01-03T17:18:55","slug":"a-cut-above","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/a-cut-above\/","title":{"rendered":"A Cut Above"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Kelly J. Stigliano<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. - Proverbs 12:25<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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ARTICLES<\/span><\/h3>

A Cut Above<\/strong>
Focus on the Family\u2019s Clubhouse House Magazine<\/em><\/p>

One man\u2019s trash is another boy\u2019s treasure . . . and budding business. That\u2019s not exactly how the saying goes. But that\u2019s the way it works for Nate and Ned K.<\/p>

These brothers make attractive cutting boards and serving trays out of discarded wood and granite.<\/p>

\u201cWe rescue wood that would normally rot,\u201d says 13-year-old Ned, \u201cand change it into a beautiful and useful object for others to enjoy.\u201d<\/p>

The boys\u2019 business began in 2013 when their family built a home in the woods of Gainesville, Florida.<\/p>

After cutting down some trees to clear the land, their dad used the wood from a small red oak to make the windowsills for their house.<\/p>

\u201cThat little oak grew faithfully for 20 years, using sun and rain to create life,\u201d their mom told the boys. \u201cNow we\u2019re going to make something useful out of it.\u201d<\/p>

Mom experimented with extra pieces of the red oak, brushing on different finishes to bring out the wood\u2019s beauty. In the end, she created a cutting board.<\/p>

Nate and Ned also played with pieces of wood left during construction. With the help of their parents and grandpa, they improved their woodworking skills by practicing cutting, sanding and finishing.<\/p>

The boys made their own cutting boards and gave them to family members for Christmas gifts. Before long, people encouraged them to go into business. In the first year and a half, Kiker Brother\u2019s Boards sold 73 cutting boards.<\/p>

\u201cThe wood and stone that we work with reveal God\u2019s craftsmanship,\u201d Ned says. \u201cWhen people admire the grain and the color, they are admiring God\u2019s fingerprint that is placed in every part of His creation.\u201d<\/p>

The wood Nate and Ned use comes from a variety of places. They got cherry and honey locust from Tennessee after some trees fell on their grandpa\u2019s property. Pecan wood came from their uncle in North Carolina who cut down a tree that was struck by lightning. The boys collected cedar branches after a Florida electric company trimmed a tree that was growing too close to power lines.<\/p>

\u201cSome people return from their travels with souvenirs like t-shirts,\u201d Nate says. \u201cWe come home with logs strapped to our roof!\u201d<\/p>

The brothers are also friends with the owner of a local construction landfill. When they saw valuable pieces of granite left over from building projects, they asked if they could gather them each week.<\/p>

While wearing protective eyewear, Ned chips away sharp edges, washes the stone slabs, puts felt pads on the bottom and ends up with beautiful serving boards.<\/p>

Nate and Ned are a good team. Nate has an eye for detail and knows how to cut wood just right to give the board an interesting curve and shape. Ned enjoys sanding a board to smooth perfection. Their two younger brothers are also getting interested in the business.<\/p>

As the business has grown, the boys have started selling their cutting boards at craft shows. Ned discovered he has a special gift for connecting with customers. He enjoys meeting new people and telling them about the business.<\/p>

Still, finding new customers isn\u2019t easy. When the brothers get discouraged, Mom helps them see the big picture and how success is achieved in small daily steps of building good habits. Dad helps by cutting logs with his chainsaw, so the boys stay well supplied with workable pieces of wood.<\/p>

The brothers also find comfort in one of their favorite Bible verses: \u201cSo be content with who you are, and don\u2019t put on airs. God\u2019s strong hand is on you; he\u2019ll promote you at the right time. (1 Peter 5:6, The Message<\/em> paraphrase).<\/p>

Ned\u2019s advice to anyone who wants to start a business is simple. \u201cMake sure you have a good product and work at it until you get the right quality. Then you can start experimenting to discover where to find people who want to buy your product.\u201d<\/p>

He knows that all great ideas and blessings come from God, and Ned wants to give back. Kiker Brothers\u2019 Boards tithes 10 percent of their income to their church. They also donate cutting boards to silent auctions with the money going to local charities.<\/p>

\u201cIt\u2019s rewarding to know that our handiwork helps raise money to support a worthwhile cause,\u201d Ned says.<\/p>

Running a business is hard work, and the experience has taught the brothers many lessons. Sometimes they feel like quitting, but they know God is with them.<\/p>

\u201cWhat we do feels small, but we see value in it,\u201d Ned says. \u201cThe business gives us an opportunity to grow in our character, especially perseverance and our work ethic.\u201d<\/p>

Work has to be done, so these brothers are never board . . . er, make that bored. <\/p>

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Kelly J. Stigliano Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. – Proverbs 12:25 ARTICLES A Cut Above Focus on the Family\u2019s Clubhouse House Magazine One man\u2019s trash is another boy\u2019s treasure . . . and budding business. That\u2019s not exactly how the saying goes. But that\u2019s the way it works […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"page-builder","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1016","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1016"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1016\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1399,"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1016\/revisions\/1399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kellystigliano.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}