Self-taught metal artist supports community with work

When Ron Haines sold Napa Auto Parts of Sumner two years ago, it was to retire.

But the 65-year-old Sumner resident didn’t stay retired for long.

Instead, he opened a new business of sorts.

“I had to find something to keep me out of trouble,” Haines said. “That’s what my wife always tells me — ‘Ron, you can do a lot of things really well, but you really suck at retirement.’”

Haines decided to become an expert in custom art creations and designs made with metal. He does his work out of a garage on his property in Sumner.

He calls it Magical Metals. It was sort of a spur-of-the-moment thing, he said.

“There are so many different things that I’ve done throughout the years, and this is one thing I’ve never done,” Haines said. “And I like conquering challenges and taking on new things.”

That’s putting it mildly.

Haines moved to Sumner from Maple Valley five years ago and in that time has established a network in the community, even deciding to run for City Council last year. He lost by 13 votes. In hindsight, it was a good thing — he’ll have more time to expand his community connections.

Many times, he makes those connections by donating his work and hours of his time.

Where the magic happens

Behind his house in Sumner, a “Magical Metals” sign that Haines made himself is hung next to the door to his studio. Metal signs stick up from the grass outside it.

Inside, the garage is full of machines, pieces of metal and signs hanging from hooks, bearing the names and logos of local organizations.

Haines makes most of his work with steel and a computer numerical control (CNC) plasma-torch cutting machine, which is computer-controlled. He taught himself how to use it.

When he gets an order or embarks on a donation project, Haines starts with a simple drawing or clip-art design submitted by a customer. He works exclusively with custom-made pieces, simply for the challenge of it.

He then scans the drawing to the computer, where it enters various programs.

“It’s like a big jigsaw puzzle,” Haines said. “You just build the different pieces of the jigsaw puzzle until you get down to this point and you’re ready to cut.”

A lot of his first pieces were trial and error, Haines admitted.

“It was pretty challenging because (I was) dealing with a whole set of different things I’ve never done, and a lot of it has to do with the drawing and the computers and figuring out how all that works together,” he said. “I went through a lot of scrap metal.”

It can take Haines up to 10 hours to prepare a piece for cutting. After it’s cut, he paints it himself. For many pieces, Haines puts in the work for no compensation.

Helping the community

Sharon Fochtman, the director of career and college readiness at the Sumner School District, was surprised with a 2-foot metal sign depicting the career and technical education (CTE) logo about a month ago.

It was made and donated by Haines, who is a guest speaker and member of the career and college readiness advisory board.

The sign is hung in the district’s administration building and garners attention from the community about the work the department does, Fochtman said.

“It’s phenomenal. Every time my teachers come in they say, ‘Oh, my God, did you see that CTE sign?’” Fochtman said. “The man has a heart of gold.”

Marilee Hill-Anderson, director of community engagement with the Sumner School District, agrees.

“In addition to his volunteer work with CTE, Ron also is a strong volunteer with Sumner-Bonney Lake Communities For Families coalition (CFF),” she said. “Ron graciously donated a large sign which was a replica of our coalition logo. It was the perfect backdrop for our 2018 Community Summit.”

Haines is a member of CFF, which is comprised of people that identify needs of residents and work to find solutions to those needs. He’s also a member of Sumner Rotary, volunteers at local food banks and has donated metal pieces to Building Beyond the Walls, a nonprofit that teaches basic construction skills, and Exodus Housing, a nonprofit that works to end domestic violence.

He’s also teaching high school students the skills of metal work.

“I get to meet a lot of different people. I get to work with a lot of different people,” Haines said. “I have the chance to take what they’re thinking of and make it happen and actually build it for them and say, ‘Here you go.’”

For more information about Magic Metals, contact Haines at ron@magicalmetals.com.