WE GATHER TOGETHER by Edward L. Woodyard

We Gather Together Chapter Sixty

Drew McCulloch sat in front of a laptop in his office, his head spinning with all that had to be done and what he alone had to do. Behind him was a roll top pedestal desk that had been his great grandfather's, then his grandfather's and finally his father's. Even though Drew now used it more for storage and filing, it leered behind him like a sword of Damocles reminding him of his obligation and responsibility to the company, its employees and his family, as well as the legacy of past accomplishments by the men who had sat at it.

He recognized what they had done and what he had to do to honor their legacy. Each man had taken the company to a next level; now it was Drew's turn. However, Drew had chosen not to sit at that desk, but to break away on his own by using an adjoining Shaker writing table that Cara had found at a garage sale, on which he placed his laptop and computer tower with two screens. He had also retired his grandfather's original oak banker's chair, the one his father had used at the roll top desk, with an ergonomically designed mesh back rolling chair. As Drew told his father when he became president of McCulloch Printing, he would not use a quill pen in a digital world.

In addition to commercial printers, Drew knew that online and self-publishing opportunities were his major competition, especially companies with outlets in large stationery supply stores. He realized that he had to offer outstanding customer service and top-quality results to maintain and expand his business, even beyond the Worldwide commitment. He was also researching forms of specialized custom printing, thinking of perhaps offering high-end options such as intaglio and silk-screen. He might want to convert part of the annex to accommodate those services. There was so much going on in his head about the possibilities that he didn't know if he'd ever have the time to even think about any of it.

Drew had sent e-mails to officials in Castlebury to set up discussions and meetings about the expansion for the week after Thanksgiving. His father would have to recuse himself from the town planning commission talks and decisions; however, Sam could participate in any discussions with the town board, as well as the engineering and planning departments, without posing a conflict of interest. The meetings would also include Kyle Rosenberg with whom Drew was in early talks to be the project architect, as well as tapping Costello, Kaiser, Deutsch and Schulman to be the legal representatives.

He knew that Cara had talked with her father about the plant expansion but decided to give him a call himself to discuss his help with the construction of the building. When Lorenzo Messina answered the phone in Albany, Drew told Lorenzo that he could start assembling his crew. Drew had always liked his irascible father-in-law for his forthrightness. He vividly remembered his statement when Lorenzo was rehabilitating his and Cara's new home. "Never get a water-saving toilet. You got to make sure everything goes down in one flush. That's how you save water."

"Lorenzo, I met with the architect this morning and will put you in touch with him."

"I hope you're considering reinforced concrete."

"Of course. It's why I called you."

"Steel and glass boxes don't last. It has no creative style."

"Cara always said if you could have fed her reinforced concrete for breakfast, you would have," observed Drew. "By the way, she said she'd help with the bookkeeping and any audits."

"She's good. She'll make sure it's done right."

"Lorenzo, tell me something I don't know."

"Okay. You know what equipment is going in yet? Weights and dimensions?"

"I'm still researching that."

"Okay, Drew. There is something you don't know."

"Yet. I am trying to get my father to help out with that part."

"You know then what you're getting will be the best."

"I don't want this done half-assed."

"That's good, Drew. Always give it your full ass."

The two men shared a laugh. Their conversation steered to Thanksgiving and about him and Celeste having it at Gabriella's house with her family and in-laws. He said that Angelica would be there with her latest boyfriend, who Lorenzo liked because he owned a towingcompany with a fleet of rollback flatbeds. "You'll meet him at Christmas – if she's still with him by then."

"We'll miss you at Thanksgiving," said Drew, "but we'll see you before you know it."