In November 1978, John and his partner, Rick Shelby, found themselves unemployed when their employer (Stern Drywall) unexpectedly went out of business. Being self-motivated, they decided to start their own business, Partner Drywall. John and Rick began subcontracting for Peterson Drywall and Stucco.  Pete (Menfred) was so great by paying them every Friday for the work done each week. He kept this up until they were on their feet as a thriving business which makes them still so thankful to this day for the role Pete played in their initial success.

After two years, Rick Shelby decided to go out on his own. Since then, the business has been run by John and his wife, Marty. In 1996, they moved to Ham Lake, Minnesota.

"We totally LOVE doing what we do and do not plan on retiring. We have been married for over fifty years and Johnny's strengths are my weaknesses and his weaknesses are my strengths. We balance each other out, and it works extremely well. We enjoy being together every day!"

"I believe that the secret to our success is a result of God giving Johnny a servant's heart. The Bible says in Matthew 23:11, 'The greatest among you shall be your servant', ...and Johnny surely is one! When a client calls with a need, he tends to it as soon as he possibly can."

"And if you ask Johnny how he is, his answer most often is 'Blessed beyond belief!!'.....and we are!"