By Rebecca Hudson
Staff Writer
It started as a whim, carpenter Tony Krant admits, but when finished he’d created what is sure to be a lasting treasure for the town of Hadley: the little town, population 62, now has a one of a kind sign that tell its visitors just where they are.
Krant carved the sign from one of the three pine logs that he had cut down from local farmer Mike Engebretson’s grove several years ago. “They were three gigantic Norway pines that stood over 100’ tall when I cut them down,” Krant recalls.
He recently sold the logs but held on to one of the larger pieces and had the notion to create something unique out of it. “We have never had a sign when you come into town,” Krant says. “So I thought I’d create something special.”
Krant fashioned the sign using a chain saw and finished it off with yellow letters that boldly spell the town’s name. He also crafted a bench that invites visitors to sit and reflect a few moments. The sign is located in Tony and his wife Cheryl’s yard and is spotlighted for nighttime viewing.
“The sign is made from one piece of wood, and the carved bench has a hollow to sit in,” Krant explains. “It’s a reflecting bench,” he says. He notes that pine is hard as a rock. “So it should last a long, long time.”
Tony and Cheryl purchased the town’s historic creamery years ago and converted it into their home, preserving much of the building’s historic nature. It is a well-loved landmark that sits on the shore of Summit Lake in Hadley.
Now it can proudly announce its name to all who visit the town and the reflecting bench in the Krant’s yard.
