Epilogue

Valerie Powers did not know what to say after hearing his story. There were elements to it that were remarkably similar to her life. The main difference was that her parents had taken steps to get her out of the public school system early, and facilitated her entry into college.

“That’s a very interesting story,” Valerie said.

Danny said, “I thought you would understand. That’s why I wanted you to do the interview.”

“You named a lot of famous people – Steve Sharp, Sam Stanton, and your wife, Val. Could I assume that Mr. Wells is the man who founded Makes Well?”

“Yes, but he was a very successful business man before that.”

“You met him and his wife at a dance. How did you end up going into business with him?”

“After I left high school, he sponsored a scholarship for non-traditional early entry college students. I won it. When we met at the presentation of the scholarship, we started talking. The idea for Makes Well came together.”

“My father is always talking about how Makes Well changed the home improvement business. Was it your idea that people could select a home fixture on the computer and have it created on demand?”

“As I said, the idea came out of a discussion we had. He was kind of enough to include me as a part-owner in the business.”

“That isn’t exactly the kind of idea that just comes from nowhere. How did it come about?”

“I was telling him about my business for printing houses. I was complaining that we could make a house as fancy as the customer wanted, but they were stuck with mass produced fixtures. The next thing I knew, he had outlets all over the country making fixtures on demand.”

She asked, “What happened to that company you and Sam started while in high school?”

“It’s still in business. It’s the largest home builder in the state. Sam and I still own shares in it. It is just that we outgrew the business. George Steele and Ken Carson were a lot older. They wanted to grow the company into something that reflected their business experience. Sam wanted to take the idea nationally. I had other interests.”

“Chuck Steele went on to found Steele Robotics. How did that come to pass?”

“That was his dream. He wasn’t interested in construction at all. As soon as he finished the original house printer, there wasn’t much for him to do. He went on to develop other automation products under his own company name.”

Valerie said, “The villain in your story, Denise ... what ever happened to her?”

Danny said, “She’s now a rather well respected reconstructive surgeon.”

“Where did that come from?” Valerie asked.

“In her senior year, she was involved in an automobile accident. She wasn’t horribly injured, but did end up with some scarring on her face. Her appearance was exceptionally important to her. She was depressed after the accident, but her depression soon turned to anger. She channeled that anger into a positive direction.”

“Do you ever talk to her?”

“We’ve met on a few special occasions. She’s a much more compassionate person now.”

Valerie faltered at trying to figure out how to frame her question without being rude. Finally, she just asked, “Your mother?”

“Ah my mother. She did marry Dr. Stevens. He was a much better fit for her personality than my father had been. They are quite active in the social scene and she’s extremely happy now.”

“Do you have a good relationship with her?”

Danny said, “Yes, I do. I know that in my story she didn’t come off as a very nice person. You have to remember that she had just been divorced and I had rejected living with her. It took her several years to recover from that. Dr. Stevens was a tremendous help.”

“Your teachers?”

“Mrs. Shapiro and Mrs. Herd represent Markem Charities and sit on the boards of several non-profit organizations affiliated with the arts. Mrs. Holmsteader has retired, but we keep in touch. She’s a remarkable woman. Mr. McClellan retired last year and has a nice little place in Florida. Mr. Chandler continued as a high school science teacher, but also spent years as an adjunct professor at the university.”

“Coach Titterman had a pivotal role in your life. What happened to him?”

“He finally led the high school basketball team to a championship season, but that wasn’t his greatest achievement. He became extremely active in the area of education reform. He fought to relax the overly strict education programs. He wasn’t entirely successful, but he did manage to get the GAT degree for gifted and talented students instituted. I understand that you are one of the few recipients of that degree.”