This is Sheilan.
Sheilan is our Operations Manager, and let me tell you- this woman is a complete and total badass.
Her job is insane. She has to know every single detail about every single project. Ranging from a high-end dining table for a VIP client to a restaurant job of 85 pieces. Custom millwork to drop-in benches. Build processes. Finishing procedures. Flat bar vs plate? This lady knows everything.
And then there’s scheduling our 25 plus craftspeople and admin staff. Corralling. Wrangling. Coaxing. Leading.
Sweet talking vendors into the best possible prices and best possible timelines. Lining up a LTL shipping freight.
Oh and she builds too. I’ve watched her crawl around on filthy floors, with a drill in her hand, a couple screws hanging out of her mouth, in a three foot clearance, to button. our. shit. up.
This woman is a POWER HOUSE. In a male-dominated field. And she slays. But not in a chip-on-your-shoulder kinda way. She does it all with a smile and with nonstop energy and and pure grace.
How? Where does she get it from? I think she gets it from her Father. Her Dad came to the USA from Northern Iraq in the 70's under political asylum. That means- shit was fucked in his home country.
When he came to the US, a non-profit helped place him with a family since he came here alone, and was only 16! He ended up in North Dakota, where he began working back-of-house at restaurants. He didn't speak ANY English when he arrived in the U.S, but he learned. At sometime in the 80's, he quit working for others- and started his own restaurant here in Colorado. He now owns “The Ranch at West 40” in Lakewood.
This man knows how to hustle. He knows how to work. He knows how to start with absolutely NOTHING and make it into something incredible. And this man- Ardalan Hardi- made a beautiful, powerful, downright badass of a daughter. And I think that’s pretty fucking amazing.
So let’s celebrate those in our lives who inspire us and make us work harder. Those that teach us how to be better humans. And those that make us aware of other cultures, other countries, and other concepts.
Humans, amiright? Beautiful