Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/853501
I t's the stuff that Hollywood screenplays are made of, and this one is true! Two brothers from Central Montana, go to welding school "back East" and return home to build a multi-million-dollar business with an old Ford pickup and a pair of welders. Jon and Paul Leach grew up in Sun River, Montana with a passion for racing anything with wheels and the will- ingness to do whatever it took to accomplish their goals. e Leach family instilled the importance of hard work and treating people well from day one, two concepts that would later intermingle with other salt of the earth principles to form the foundation of their company. Fresh out of welding school, Jon and Paul purchased an old Ford pickup for $750, outfied it with a welder for each of them, and went to work at the refinery. According to Jon, "At the time there were a lot of contract weld - ers around, but we were the only ones willing to do things other than weld". When welding jobs dried up at the refinery, they found themselves digging ditches, painting pipes and a myriad of other tasks that kept them employed while launching their reputation as a comprehensive solution to pipeline problems. "We would just say yes to everything the refinery asked us to do", Paul said. Becoming certified at pipeline inspection, painting, and insulation in addition to their core of welding expertise, solidified their place in refineries around the state and propelled Loenbro's expansion throughout the mountain west. Within a maer of just a few years, this "can do aitude" coupled with a mission to treat people right while reinvesting in the communities within which they worked, resulted in explosive growth, taking their company from a two-man gig, to a signifi - cant player in the industry, touting over 500 employees. With their core business on solid footing and never content to let grass grow under their feet, the Leach Brothers began sponsoring talented dirt-track and up and coming NASCAR racer, Steve Arpin. Born in Fort Frances, On - tario to parents who fostered his How a Love of Racing, an old Ford pickup, Two Brothers, and 5 Principles Came Together to Challenge International Racings Elite. Sporting Life Text by Shane Klippenes Photography provided by Loenbro SignatureMT | 51