Our President, Gary Violette, grew up around drywall.  His father, Leo, worked in drywall and when Gary graduated from high school in 1977, Leo started his own drywall company named Leo Violette & Sons Drywall Contractors.

Gary worked with his father learning the trade and also learning how to estimate jobs and run the business.  In 1990 Leo wanted to move on to bigger and better things so he sold the company to his son Gary.  Gary then incorporated under the name Central Maine Drywall, Inc. and continued in his father’s footsteps.

During that first year, Gary and one other employee worked hands-on in the field while dad Leo helped him with some of the estimating.  Soon after, Gary hired Dick Bard as his estimator and for the first ten years, he continued to work hands-on in the field.  After those first years, Gary left the field work to his employees and moved into the office where he concentrated on running and growing Central Maine Drywall, Inc.  Eventually, an office manager was added to the company and it continued to grow and thrive.

Gary and his wife Lynne went on to have four children.  Their oldest, Kaleb, attended college and got his business degree and then came to work at the family company.  Beginning as the office manager, he quickly learned the art and science of estimating from Dick and has grown to become our chief estimator and project manager.  Kaleb bids and manages our large commercial projects as well as overseeing our company’s safety program.

In 2015, Central Maine Drywall, Inc. held its first company-wide Safety Training Seminar at which our company’s Safety Manuals and Employee Manuals were distributed to all of our employees.  This seminar represented the company’s commitment to operating under safe conditions and reinforced the fact that safety is THE most important aspect in the construction industry.

The future?  This part of our story will have to wait until the next generation comes on board.  Gary and Lynne’s grandson Mason is already getting his feet wet and may someday be the fourth generation of Violettes to have drywall in his veins.  He just needs to grow some more so his feet can reach the pedals!