Ralph Lester book signing |
Lester will be on-hand to sign copies of his book
Thursday, May 03
11:00 AM
Location: Patrick Henry Community College - Walker building; main campus in Martinsville
Ralph Lester's Book Signing - "Magnet"
Commentary about the movers and shakers - the people who were drawn to this area and made it successful - hence the title 'Magnet'.
A book signing for long-time local businessman and new author Ralph Lester has been scheduled at Patrick Henry Community College on Thursday, May 3, 11 a.m.- 1 p.m. in the Walker Fine Arts/Student Center on the college's main campus in Martinsville.
Lester, well known as the founder and president of Nationwide Homes, recently authored and published Magnet: A Commentary. According to Lester, the book is a "commentary about the movers and shakers - the people who were drawn to this area and made it successful - hence the title 'Magnet'."
Lester has donated copies of the book to the Patrick Henry Community College Foundation, which will be available for $15 at the autograph session on May 3. Proceeds from the sale of the books will go to the Foundation in support of the college.
“This is really a unique gift,� noted Natalie Harder, Executive Director of the PHCC Foundation. “No one has ever donated the rights to a publication before, so it is very exciting for us.�
Books will also be available at PHCC Artisan Center in Uptown Martinsville. Another book signing has been scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 17 at King's Grant Retirement Community.
In Magnet, Lester recognizes people who helped settle and develop the local area: "the men and women who had an extra portion of talent, leadership, and energy, responsible for the cultural and economic growth of Henry County, Virginia, beginning in the Colonial era and continuing to the present."
Lester presents brief descriptions of 186 individuals and their contributions to the growth of the area inMagnet, ranging from nationally known historical figures like Patrick Henry and highly recognized local characters like Dana Baldwin, Marshall Fields, Governor Gerald Baliles and Clay Earles, to lesser known individuals such as Benton Blackard and Joel Kolodney. Individuals in the book are both living and deceased.
In recapping the accomplishments of these individuals, the reader gets a sense of the area's history and how the local economy developed throughout the years.
"The technological developments, the social developments, transportation, manufacturing, culture and the rapid growth --in all of these I just have to live in wonder. If you consider the subjects with the commentaries, you can quickly know that the 'Good Lord' has blessed me, my family and the our area with unusual talent, energy, leadership, ambition and motivation. If I had not brought it to your attention, then who would have?" Lester writes.
Lester was born in 1918 in the "back woods" of Henry County near Figsboro. In a chapter titled, "My Testimony," he writes about growing up and working with his father and brothers in the family sawmill business. Riding to town (Martinsville) in a 1924 Model Dodge as a young boy, Lester would notice the nice homes on Church Street and Starling Avenue and think about the "winners" who must live in those houses. He made it his goal to be among them.
He tells about his stints in various jobs and the U.S. Army Corp (1941) before establishing Continental Homes and then Nationwide Homes, and credits his success to a number of individuals who influenced his growth.
In an Afterword called "About the Author," Irving M. Groves, Jr. says, "Ralph was certainly one of those about which this book was written. A visionary in his chosen field of home manufacturing, a community servant, and a true Christian have been his hallmark."
Lester has received numerous awards and served on various community and civic organizations, including the Salvation Army, Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation, United Way, Patrick Henry Boys Plantation, Memorial Hospital, Union Theological Seminary and Forest Hills Presbyterian Church. He established the Alice Lester Foundation in memory of his late wife to provide scholarships to the area's young people. This foundation is currently incorporated in to the Patrick Henry Community College Foundation. He has received the "Others Award," a rarely presented and highly coveted recognition by the National Headquarters of the Salvation Army, and the Heck Ford Award for his contributions to Martinsville and Henry County.
