My "Bucket" List

My wife and I went skydiving for the first time last weekend. It was the latest in a series of adventures we have pursued over the last ten to fifteen years. The older I get, the less patient I am about accomplishing the things that I have fantasized about doing at least once before I die; before "kicking the bucket".

I've been fortunate enough to cross a lot of items off my list: learning to fly, climbing a pyramid, sailing around the Virgin Islands, building a house with my own hands. Some of these things happened spontaneously; riding a motorcycle through a buffalo herd, comes to mind. Others took planning, concerted effort and time. Some were anti-climactic, and others, like flying, became long-term avocations. They have all contributed to the fullness of my life, but in the end, does satisfaction in life really come from making checkmarks on a list? No.

Deeper peace comes from our daily work; from countless everyday actions. It comes from the design challenge I wrestle with and solve, from the advice I give, or the knowledge I teach. It's the kind word I share. The conflict I resolve.

The one goal that remains always on my list is this: "Have I left the world better than I found it this morning?" That's the one item that I pray will be checked "yes" when my bucket finally tips.

Juris is a member of A.I.A. and NCARB and is licensed in Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. Juris' interests include aviation, woodworking, travel and canine rescue work.

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Cornerstone

On my desk I have a photograph of the church my parents attended as children. I took it a few years ago when my wife and I had the privilege of visiting, with them, the village in Latvia where they grew up. Their families fled Soviet annexation at the outset of World War II, settling in the Midwest after spending the war as refugees.

The picture is of the church's cornerstone, dated 1495. The tallest structure in town, this building has been the focal point of that community for more than 500 years. The postwar buildings around it are crumbling, victims of shoddy construction and uninspired design. The church remains a symbol of the people's faith and hope through generations, through war and peace, through prosperity as well as dark uncertainty.

Does what we build matter? Does it matter how we build? Does it matter for whom we build? My answer is yes; it matters more than we know.

"So what are you up to these days?" was the common theme at my recent KU class reunion. "Whatever my kids are doing" was my flippant response. And yet it really wasn't flippant. As with all parents, watching our children discover and excel is very rewarding. Of course some of their interests are directly related to my own, but lately I have been into cricket, basketball, baseball, cross-country, academics, modeling, hunting, music, scouting, and the list goes on. What a wonderful job!

On my drive home from the reunion, I pondered my response and began to see a direct correlation between how I enjoy my children and why I enjoy my profession. One of the great discoveries about this profession is the client relationship. The fact that you get to research and learn, sometimes live, the world of your clients. Often you have to immerse yourself into the project to begin to solve the design problem. I am an architect. But some days I get to be a banker, assembly line worker, caregiver, entrepreneur, dentist, contractor, teacher, and the list goes on. What a wonderful job!

I find great satisfaction in helping others succeed. Architecture is the means by which I can. I am reminded of the line from Charles Dickens' famous story The Christmas Carol, in which Jacob Marley so accurately stated, "Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business."

Vince is a member of A.I.A. and NCARB and is licensed in Kansas and Iowa. Vince's interests include boating, vehicle restoration and drawing.

Service

Service is a value that's cultivated during childhood. Many of us grow up mimicking our role models; watching them help family, friends and neighbors. In some places it might be called stewardship and in others, manners, but the inner need to serve others without the thought of compensation or favor is a character you'll find in those of us raised on the Great Plains.

When we're old enough to venture out into the world, we take these life lessons with us and apply them to our work. That's true of my experience in Architecture. Daily, I lament the loss of respect I witness even in the most mundane appointments of my schedule. Rude attendants at the service counter, the indifference of drivers on the streets and the lack of trust; these are examples of a society losing it's responsibility to each other.

My mission in Architecture is first to serve; I serve my Partners and employees, I serve my client, I serve their interests and I serve the community. Each listed has a special need and my careful attention confirms the need has been met. Several times these needs may overlap or come into conflict with each other, but it's always my job to serve, thereby building success.

My service is what I bring to PKHLS Architecture and that commitment is what brings our clients back for multiple projects. It's what brings Contractors back to work with us. It's what develops the relationships we're most proud of. Service is an honor and a privilege.

Lester is a member of A.I.A. and NCARB and is licensed in Missouri, Kansas, South Carolina and Colorado. Lester's interests include participating in bicycle racing and fly fishing.

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Ethos

Defined by Merriam-Webster, ethos means, "the distinguishing character, sentiment, moral nature, or guiding beliefs of a person, group or institution." Dictionary.com defines it as, "the fundamental character or spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group or society."

Recently, I was chatting with a young man about his unsuccessful attempt to find work. He was falling short during written exams and wasn't making it to the interview process where he felt he could shine. When asked, he said he wasn't a "good speller" but, in his experience, "that's what computers are for." I thought of the lesson my mother taught me during my childhood, "If you spell correctly, you speak correctly" and vice versa.

My offhand response was, "You and I come from different generations." (Given that he is 20 years my junior, this was truer than I realized at the time.) In this young man's experience, technology compensates for his lack of spelling acumen; he is content letting the computer make up for his educational shortfall rather than working to improve. I don't know if he is lazy or believes he is directing his energy to greater things—letting what he considers ancillary fall by the wayside. Either case, in my opinion, is bad and a commentary on his personal ethos.

PKHLS Architecture has written a corporate ethos that speaks to putting our egos away and listening to and honoring the ideas our clients bring us. This means extracting not only the information but also the essence of the ideas. This ethos is something that each member of our Partnership brought to this firm. It is the underlying sentiment that allows us to be successful, both individually and collectively.

We are educated, skilled people who remember and use the lessons taught us by our parents and teachers. We strive to improve our position by remembering that success takes personal and professional work, and it's work with no shortcuts.

Take a moment to examine corporate culture and ethos when determining what firm to choose. It's not always about price; it’s about commitment. You might read it on a website, but you should always hear it in the voice.

What am I doing to make my community sustainable?

Traveling the dusty back roads of the Great Plains by motorcycle, I seek the skeletonized reminders of past communities. Foundations mark their former lives like so many concrete grave markers. These cities have long since passed and it makes me wonder why. Did the highways of the 40's and 50's pass them by? Did the rush of new industry and invention during the industrial revolution make them obsolete? Or was it the indifference of our own citizens that caused their demise? Modernity asked people to look for expertise elsewhere.

Cities today are no more immune to progress and indifference than those of the past. I think we must ask ourselves if the question civic modernization posed, worked. Was it right to seek expertise and perfection outside our own communities? Today, in order to survive, our cities must frequent existing (local) providers of goods and services, support our local entrepreneurs and entice high-quality professions and professionals.

When our stories are written, will readers chastise us for the things we didn't do to remain vibrant and alive, or will they praise us for looking inward for health and sustainability instead of outward for answers we already had? In this day of recycling and sustainability, ask yourself, "What am I doing to make my community sustainable? What can I demand of myself and my local government to ensure my community stays viable for myself and my children's children?"

Green-Fatigue

Every time I speak publicly about my critical view of the "green movement," the response I hear is usually one of relief. A stigma exists that keeps people from thinking logically about the surrender of personal freedom associated with being carbon neutral. Once control of carbon (which is crucial to life, prosperity and ingenuity) is established, you are hard pressed to maintain any semblance of autonomy from that authority.

Stewardship is a term I prefer when describing the design process to maximize the building effort toward tangible and value-based solutions for a Client. Basic elements of sustainable design strategies are necessary, such as minimizing construction waste, geographic material selection, site orientation and high-efficiency building systems. One caution I have is that hyper-complicated systems can, and often do, dramatically increase the maintenance burden to an Owner of a high performance building.

Without financial subsidy, many of the LEED strategies do not carry a competitive and sustainable impact on their own merits. They are commonly forced into the marketplace with a disingenuous conscience of guilt and misplaced emotion. The imposition of carbon neutrality summarily ignores the essentiality of carbon in the cycle of nature, including photosynthesis, animals, and (gasp) even us humans. To declare carbon a pollutant is laughable, and certainly not scientific—it is the greenest and most abundant element on earth! We clearly have much to lose in a movement obsessed with confiscatory policies, mandates and codes, which may grind achievement to a painful halt. Beware of the proverbial scientific bandwagon, and the pop-culture that jumps on it.

David is a member of A.I.A. and NCARB and is licensed in Arizona and Kansas. David's interests include crankshafts, baseball and old westerns.

Essay Archive

Much in Common

I learned that defense wins championships from the Chuck Noll-coached Steelers of my childhood. Supported by a pounding running game, you can control a high-powered opponent by keeping them off the field and your defense well rested. You just have to be disciplined enough to stay with it, even when the fans want you to throw the ball.

My father was the hardest working man I have ever encountered. He taught me the value of deliberate effort, and the necessity of completion and accomplishment. I can still hear him saying "it doesn't take me all day to do half a day's work."

As for my mother, I learned the importance of composure. After striking out in a little league game, I sent the bat from my hands, with brisk pace, toward the dugout. After the game, I got into the back seat of the car, dejected about the loss. Mom very quietly, and with certainty of unspoken fate, stated that she would never see me act that way again. No lecture or drawn-out speech—but profoundly powerful in its simplicity. I believed her, and it shaped my passion for many pursuits in life. My mother, father and Chuck Noll had much in common.

Two men created the guidelines that formed the course of my personal and professional life. First and foremost was my Dad—he was honest, dependable, family oriented, modest, loyal, friendly and competitive. These personal traits were examples of his daily life and I would like to think they were contagious to those around him. At age 47 he enlisted in the Navy Seabees and served two years in the South Pacific in World War II. Why? Because his two sons were also serving and he felt his enlistment was more important to the country than his oilfield job. My hero. One earns respect by deeds, not words.

There was a period between my World War II service with the Navy Air Corp and the architecture program at Kansas State University when I worked for Wichita Architect Wendell Parks. He stressed the importance of producing professional drawings. Number one, of course, was for the information to be correct and that information had to be presented in a professional manner. He insisted on line quality, neat lettering and details that were complete, thus eliminating guesswork during bidding and construction. He also stressed the importance of being deeply involved in the community that you serve as a professional and that, in turn, supports you as a professional. There are no one-way streets in life.

Numerous people have impacted my professional life since 1950 and my married life since 1946, but these two men set the example that respect and credibility has to be earned–thus confirming that "word of mouth" is the best advertising a professional can enjoy.