Getting to Know Our WP Rawl Transportation Team Member: Pete Widell
May 06, 2021
- Name: Pete Widell
- How long have you worked for WPR? I will be going on 4 years as of August. The time has flown by.
- What do you enjoy the most about your job? People. People make my day talking to them. You have to enjoy where you work since we spend so much time away from our own families. I can honestly say that I have never worked at a place before where I can say “I can’t stand that person.” My goal is to make every interaction a positive one. If you have called in when I answer I try my best to at least make people laugh.
- What was your first job? I started working for my Grandfathers business working in construction and building maintenance. I learned a lot that I use still to this day when I work on a house. I can glaze a window like a champ.
- Most interesting fact about you most people don’t know? I use to operate a meat goat farm. We had over 100 goats at a time. Kidding season was great as the mommas would drop their kids all over 40 acres and we would have to gather them up like Easter eggs to get them into the barn. Fun. Especially in a rain storm.
- Hobbies: Reading, history, family genealogy, American Rev war reenacting, model trains, painting toy soldiers, trout fishing, and volunteering for the Sons of American Revolution.
- Favorite food/Snack? In no particular order Pretzels, cheesesteaks, scrapple, mint chocolate chip ice cream and for a vegetable Brussel sprouts. My choices mostly reflect the region of the US that I grew up and have family roots.
- Where do you love to take vacations? Tough one as I normally don’t take vacations. I enjoy where ever I end up on my time off from the beach, mountains, or a state park.
- What was your favorite Christmas or Birthday Present you ever received? Okay, great question and it will get a little sappy. During the Christmas season when I was a kid my mom would take my brothers and I over to Wannamaker’s, a large department store that was very popular in Philadelphia to have Breakfast with Santa. When you are a kid, this is a big deal. However, during this time in my life it was rough. I had outgrown Santa and my parents had been divorced. My mom was working three jobs, money was tight, and I knew it would be a small Christmas. Anyway, Wannamaker’s had a wonderful light show in the Grand Hall (you can look it up on YouTube) and after that you could get your picture with Santa as my little brother did. After that we would get to the breakfast which was a pancake, 2 sausage links, accompanied by some goofy show Santa’s elves put on. After breakfast we would head to the toy department. Wannamaker’s had a large and extensive toy department. They had the type of toys that only existed dream. Well, I was walking around unimpressed with the toys in my preteen coolness with what I saw except when I turned the corner and then stopped in my tracks. There in front of me was castle display that I could use for my toy soldiers… I was very enamored by this wood castle. It seemed like an eternity staring at that castle dreaming of all the adventures my knights could have! At some point in my daydreaming quests my Mom came over and gently said that it was time to go. Like all kids that see something they know is out of reach I begrudgingly went with her but before we left the store my Mom and my older brother had a discussion that he would stay behind as he wanted to do more shopping. But, that was all. We went home afterwards. I dreamt of how cool that castle was and what a lucky kid would get such a cool item. Maybe I could make one like that? Well, the big day came and my brothers and I fought each other down the stairs like we did every year to be first to see what Santa brought. Well, I can’t remember what everyone else got or what I got besides that castle. And yes, to this day I still have it and have had the pleasure of watching my son play with knights with it.