Christmas Eve in 1983

Christmas Eve in 1983 is one that I will NEVER forget. Our workers had the day off. I was in the process of building our first fertilizer plant in Waller, Texas. On top of the bucket elevator was a giant pulley that drove the elevator belt. The job on December 24 was to get the pulley installed.  It weighed a couple of hundred pounds.  So there I was with my Dad, Wesley, working on a platform 65 feet in the air.  We were wrestling the pulley in place that morning.  The temperature was 11 degrees that day. It was misting rain. We worked and worked that morning to get the job done. By about noon, we could not move our fingers anymore as everything was covered in ice. I looked at Dad and said, “Let’s go home and enjoy Christmas.” So we did.  What did I learn from this? My Dad is incredible.  He is 93 years old, is as mentally sharp as ever, and wants to keep working.

- Dean Nelson, Co-Owner and Founder