Texas Training
In January, Cathedral Stone touched down on San Antonio, Texas soil to kickstart the 2021 Training Season. Curtis Hunt Restoration invited me out to certify their team — a renowned, family owned restoration company that has been restoring historic buildings in the San Antonio region for four generations and counting. Curtis Hunt IV, brother Michael, and sister Brandy run the show as they continue their great grandfather’s legacy of masterful stone cutting and historic restoration. Equipped with a great staff of hardworking, passionate employees, Curtis Hunt Restoration is pure craftsmanship at it’s best.
We had two days on a ranch to do the training — and we accomplished quite a bit. While I did do some “reading material” presentations, most of our time was spent on hands-on repairs with various Jahn Mortars. In just two days, we went from the basics of using Jahn Mortars to the more complex and decorative techniques used by the best masons. We mostly used Texas Limestone for these advanced techniques, which was a great learning experience for me.
We could not of had a better location for the training — a ranch owned by one of Hunt’s team. Particularly interesting was a relief of the Alamo carved from Texas Limestone and laid above a doorway.
Hunt’s team was most interested in, and pleased by, how fast they could get into detailed carving of the repairs. Clearly, Curtis Hunt Restoration is about the details and it was awesome to work with them for a few days.
One of the truly great things about my job here at Cathedral Stone is that I get to work with so many talented masons. I enjoy my New York trainees, but getting out to the rest of the country just reminds me of how much there is to learn. A big thanks to Curtis Hunt Restoration for hosting the training — can’t wait to get back to Texas and wear my new cowboy hat!
Post by Mike Liguori, CSP/Jahn Trainer
