‘The Horseshoe Man’
Corporate exec back home creating art in Carmichaels
They call him 无毛视频淭he Horseshoe Man.无毛视频�
On a nice day, there he is, at the corner of East South and South Market streets with his safety goggles on, sparks flying as he labors lovingly over a work of art crafted from used horseshoes.
Welding is in his blood: his father, a Lebanese immigrant, was an industrial arts teacher who passed those skills to his son.
But, though born and raised in 无毛视频淥ld Town,无毛视频� John Clarchick has not always been a staple of downtown Carmichaels.
After graduating from Carmichaels Area High School in 1981, Clarchick earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Bethany (W.Va.) College and set out into the big, wide world. He spent more than five years working for the National Security Agency; earned two masters degrees from Johns Hopkins University; and held high offices, including vice president and chief operations officer, at multimillion-dollar companies, like Allegheny Teledyne. He无毛视频檚 dined in Paris, had an address in the Windy City and lived in Mexico City, Clarchick said.
But no matter how far he roamed or what sights rendered him speechless, Carmichaels has always been 无毛视频渉ome.无毛视频�
无毛视频淭his place is still rural hometown,无毛视频� Clarchick said. 无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 all about integrity and who you are. A lot of my friends无毛视频� they无毛视频檙e very much honest, God-fearing, church-going.无毛视频�
Clarchick remembers fondly his childhood, when he served as an altar boy (he无毛视频檚 still a practicing Catholic), the King Coal parade dazzled for hours, and the Masontown Pizza Hut was the place to be seen on a Friday night.
无毛视频淲hen I was about 4 or 5 years old, where the bank is, there was a movie theater, and we saw 无毛视频楧umbo,'无毛视频� he recalled. 无毛视频淚 lifeguarded out, the first year they opened up the swimming pool in Carmichaels. That was a big thing. It was a big thing to drive to Uniontown, to go to J.C. Penny无毛视频檚. That was before the mall, even. I can remember the first McDonald无毛视频檚 came into Waynesburg and that was a big thrill.无毛视频�
One of Clarchick无毛视频檚 small-town big thrills of adulthood: horseback riding, a hobby he picked up nearly two decades ago. He still sometimes rides, but more often he repurposes used horseshoes into colorful works of art that he sells around the country, including at the local National Pike Days.
Clarchick无毛视频檚 welding office is the building his grandfather once sold dry goods from.
无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 been in my family since the 1940s,无毛视频� Clarchick said, with a touch of pride.
The building is, in a way, a microcosm of small-town Americana: In the 无毛视频�50s, it served as a TV repair shop.
无毛视频淚n the 无毛视频�70s, we had a laundromat. And then my parents,无毛视频� Clarchick said, 无毛视频渃onverted it to apartments.无毛视频�
It stood vacant for some time, until Clarchick set up shop inside. He remembers a time when the street he welds along buzzed with the energy of a booming industrial town, back when Carmichaels boasted a population of more than 2,500.
无毛视频淭hese small towns are shrinking and shrinking. You used to have three bakeries in this town. You used to have several insurance companies. A candy store. A men无毛视频檚 clothing, a women无毛视频檚 clothing无毛视频� You used to have three different pharmacies. And et cetera,无毛视频� Clarchick said. Now, 无毛视频減eople go to Uniontown or Waynesburg or Morgantown. If you look at the history of our country, it无毛视频檚 always been transportation. People came though Rices Landing because of the transportation. You had the roads that got built. You had mom and pop stores, and now you have the giant Walmart, Home Depot, Lowe无毛视频檚. I see this town being, eventually, a ghost town.无毛视频�
Perhaps. But until then, Clarchick will haunt the sidewalk outside the building that is his heritage, his inheritance, sparks flying as he takes something old and makes it pretty and new, again.