by Francis Materi

Pinke Lumber has set an open house to celebrate 40 years of doing business in Wishek and the surrounding area.

The event will be held on Oct. 11, in conjunction with Wishek's 92nd-annual Sauerkraut Day festivities.

Homemade kuchen and coffee will be served from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Pinke Lumber, 403 Beaver Ave. Forty door prizes also will be given away, including a $400 gift certificate.

Patriarch Eldon Pinke, who purchased the business in 1977, has carried on a family tradition.

Eldon's grandfather, Henry Pinke, emigrated to Iowa and then to North Dakota from Rummelsburg, Germany, in the late 1800s.

"(Henry) built farmsteads for himself, and for one of my dad's brothers, as well as for other farmers in the area," Eldon says.

"My grandfather was a farmer/carpenter and so was my father, Elmer."

Elmer Pinke worked for the Northern Pacific Railroad in the Bridges and Buildings Division.

"He worked on a lot of the wood-constructed railway depots of that era, mostly in the 1950s," Eldon says.

In 1957, Elmer sold the family farm and worked as a carpenter and builder, before his retirement about five years later.

"I graduated from high school in 1961. I worked alongside my dad for a couple of years and then ventured out on my own," Eldon says.

During that time, Eldon lived in Marion and also served customers in Litchville and LaMoure. He married his wife, Carol, in 1965.

Eldon later worked briefly at a lumberyard in Kulm. In 1977, Eldon and Carol moved to Wishek and purchased what is now Pinke Lumber from Arthur and Marie Sayler.

At that time, the east end of Wishek looked very different, Eldon says.

"The National Guard Armory was off by itself in a field. The restaurant, the SuperValu store and the Bottle Shop had not been built yet. Neither had the homes just to the west of the school," he says.

Wishek enjoyed a construction boom in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

"Pinke Lumber was involved with quite a bit of that, especially with the new homes," Eldon says. "We received good support from the local community and from surrounding towns from the very start.

"Our primary service area gradually expanded to about an 80-mile radius of Wishek and that has continued to this day."

The lumberyard in Kulm was purchased and operated as a Pinke Lumber branch location for about 10 years, roughly from 1985-95.

Eldon's son, Nathan, who had been working as a sales representative for a pharmaceutical company, and his wife, Katie, returned to the family business in 2007.

"I was about to take the next step in my career, which would have included moving to New Jersey," Nathan says.

"But Katie and I decided we wanted to raise our family in the same sort of small-town environment both of us grew up in. We came back to Wishek and we are glad we did.

"We were fortunate that Katie's jobs (in advertising, public relations and communications) are ones that generally have allowed her to work remotely. She has been able to maintain her career."

Carol and Katie have been vital contributors to the success of Pinke Lumber. Carol served as bookkeeper until about five years ago. Katie coordinates marketing and promotions for the business.

"About three years ago, we expanded the operation to include Pinke Homes," Eldon says. "It has proven to be a very good idea."

Nathan says one of the goals with the addition of the Pinke Homes unit has been to grow the company's reach and market area.

"It has worked well," he says. "We have shipped homes to literally every corner of North Dakota. Belcourt, Killdeer, Medina, Washburn, just to name a few. Even beyond the state's borders to places like Baker, Montana."

Eldon and Nathan say the availability of tradesmen in the area has been a key factor.

"The carpenters, plumbers, electricians and others make it all possible. There is no way would could have made this (Pinke Homes) idea work without them," says Nathan.

"And when I say 'local,' that extends out about 40 miles in every direction. This is a rural and small-town region, but it's full of people with incredible skills, who do top-notch, high-quality work. We are so grateful to have that resource at our disposal."

Nathan notes that the nature of the overall business has changed dramatically since Pinke Lumber was founded in 1977.

"It's not just lumber and building materials. We sell floor covering, cabinets, windows, paint, and all sorts of interior furnishings," he says.

"Lumber still is some of what we do, but what we really do now is projects. We provide drawings and coordination, as well as the materials.

"Lumberyards used to be full of dust and most of our regular customers were men.

"These days, we have customized showrooms and there are women in and out of here every day, suggesting design ideas, picking out materials and furnishings, just getting very involved in the whole process."

Eldon says it's been gratifying to see many repeat customers. Pinke Lumber may have helped build a home for someone 30 years ago and now is doing the same for that person's children and grandchildren.

"This has always been a family business and I think it always will be," says Nathan. "Our son, Hunter, has worked at Pinke Lumber and I expect our daughters, Elizabeth and Anika, will work here, too.

"We have had a lot to be proud of during the last 40 years. It's exciting to think about what the future will bring."