At the age of 13, I thought about becoming a locksmith after seeing an ad in a magazine called Popular Mechanic. In the 9th grade, I took home my school hall combo lock and made a key for it. While I was at school waiting in the hallway for my teacher in a different building I tried my homemade key on a students combo lock and it unlocked the hall locker. So I was able to unlock any hall locker in the school with my homemade key. That was the last time I tried my key on any lockers at school. Around the age of 19 years old, I picked a master lock with just a small screw driver and a carpet needle. When I was unemployed in January 1992, for about a year, I learned how to be a Locksmith through a mail ordering school, Foley-Belsaw Company. After I completed the courses, I bought my tools, key blanks, and some lock picking tools to open cars and most any type of locks. My first big job just after I finished my locksmithing course was rekeying a 15 unit motel with a Master system. I met the owner Marlee of Marlee's Restaurant & Lounge in Enumclaw, WA, through a friend of mine at a local photo lab where we both worked. Marlee introduce me to Pete, the owner of the Ridge Motel just behind Marlees business. Pete wanted his 15 unit motel rekeyed with a master system. This would be my first master system rekey job. It took me about a few days to do it. I had to drive from Seattle, WA, to Enumclaw, WA, a few times but I got the job done and Pete was happy. Pete also owned a 7-11 store in Seattle, WA. After that I have done a few locksmithing jobs that just paid for all my locksmithing tools and supplies. My business name back then and now is Mark's Locksmith Work was slow so I went back to college and received a Bachelor of Arts in Video Communications and a minor in Computer Applications and found a job in Eugene, OR, working at KVAL Ch 13. After 3.5 years I left that job and moved to Beaverton, OR. I got a job working for Pop-A-Lock and after about three months I quit. About 2 years later, I started up Mark's Locksmith and at the same time I was an Apartment Manager for a small apartment complex. After about 5 years of working both jobs at the same time I quit the apartment managing job and I'm only running my small locksmith business now. I am now working full time as a locksmith.

 

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