FAMILY-OWNED LAKE LUMBER SOLD TO ANOTHER LOCAL FAMILY
Kelvin Hafner purchases longtime Panora business from the Neel family.
Posted 8/10/2021
By Susan Thompson
Lake Panorama Times
2021 marks the 94th year the Neel family has been in the lumber business. 2021 also marks the first year for the Hafner family to be in the lumber business, with Kelvin Hafner’s recent purchase of Lake Lumber.
The transfer of ownership was announced to Lake Lumber employees July 19 in a meeting that involved Tom and Sharon Neel and Hafner.
“I told them I want to learn from them,” says Hafner. “Customer service has always been important at Lake Lumber, and I want to continue that emphasis.”
The succession plan calls for the Neels to continue to work at Lake Lumber. No final date has been set for them to retire.
“We’ll be here for a while,” Tom says. “We want to help him succeed, and we’ll be available as needed.”
Hafner calls the arrangement exciting. “I’ll be a sponge, learning from Tom and Sharon and the rest of the staff. It’s going to take me a while to process everything, to learn their internal programs. I want our contractors and customers to know this will be a seamless change.”
The Neel family’s long history in the lumber business began in 1900 when George Neel and Sons purchased a lumberyard in Rippey. One of those sons, Leonard, started Neel Lumber in Grand Junction in 1927. His son, Bob, took over the business in 1954. Bob and Dorothy Neel purchased Lake Lumber in 1977 and continued to operate the Grand Junction location until it closed in 1982.
Bob and Dorothy’s son, Tom, joined the business in 1984. Tom and Sharon met in Minnesota, where he attended Mankato State, and she attended the University of Minnesota. When they married and moved to Panora after graduation, Sharon worked for Midwest Landscaping. She joined the lumber business in 1992, taking over management of the hardware line, so Tom could focus on building materials.
Working in the lumber and construction business isn’t new to Hafner. While attending college, he worked part-time for Beach Building Center in Muscatine and transitioned to a full-time position there after graduation.
Next was a sales manager position with Moehl Millwork, a locally owned wholesale distributor of millwork products based in Ankeny. The company serves lumber dealers throughout Iowa and contractors in the Des Moines metro area. Through that position, Hafner met the Neels and has worked with them for many years.
Tom Neel says he put out some feelers to industry contacts in the past year about possibly selling the business. Hafner had, in conversation, inquired about the Neel’s succession plans, which was to someday sell. Hafner later expressed serious interest, and they started working through the details.
Bob and Dorothy Neel were among the first people to own a home at Lake Panorama. They moved into the house they built in 1979. Bob passed away in 2000. Dorothy continues to live in her Lake Panorama home, although she spends some time at Lakeside Village during the winter months. In January 2016, at the age of 86, she officially retired from her Lake Lumber bookkeeping duties.
Tom and Sharon both turn 60 years old this year and say it was never their goal to beat Dorothy’s record of working until the age of 86.
“We’re ready to slow down,” Tom says. “We hope to travel more. I want to spend more time fishing, and hunting, and laying in my hammock. I hope we can have at least 20 good years of retirement.”
Three years ago, Tom and Sharon moved from Panora to a new home they built at Lake Panorama, on a lot next to Dorothy. Their daughter Breanne is the branch manager at Lincoln Savings Bank in Clive. Daughter Emily is a graphic designer with Two Rivers Marketing in Des Moines.
While both girls worked at Lake Lumber during high school, they didn’t have an interest in being involved long-term in the lumber business.
“This is a very tough, competitive business. There aren’t many independent, locally owned lumber companies anymore,” Tom says.
Hafner recently resigned from Moehl Millwork after 25 years to take on this new opportunity as the owner of Lake Lumber. He has lived at Lake Panorama since 2000. His family consists of two sons — Drew, a junior at Iowa State University, and Ethan, who will be a freshman at Iowa State this fall — and his fiancé, Stephanie Hummel.
“We’ve always been community oriented,” says Sharon. “I think it’s great for someone who is already in our hometown to be taking over the business, rather than a corporation that doesn’t know the community and customers.”
“The Neels have established a great legacy here, and I’m humbled to have the opportunity to carry it on,” Hafner says. “I’m looking forward to taking some of the load off their plates and helping make this a positive transition for them and their customers.”
Hafner acknowledges another thing he’s happy about is the short commute. He’s been traveling to Ankeny each work day for the past three years, and for 21 years before that driving at least 1,000 miles a week.
“Now I have a 5-minute commute,” he says. “I don’t even have time to finish my coffee.”
By Susan Thompson
Lake Panorama Times
2021 marks the 94th year the Neel family has been in the lumber business. 2021 also marks the first year for the Hafner family to be in the lumber business, with Kelvin Hafner’s recent purchase of Lake Lumber.
The transfer of ownership was announced to Lake Lumber employees July 19 in a meeting that involved Tom and Sharon Neel and Hafner.
“I told them I want to learn from them,” says Hafner. “Customer service has always been important at Lake Lumber, and I want to continue that emphasis.”
The succession plan calls for the Neels to continue to work at Lake Lumber. No final date has been set for them to retire.
“We’ll be here for a while,” Tom says. “We want to help him succeed, and we’ll be available as needed.”
Hafner calls the arrangement exciting. “I’ll be a sponge, learning from Tom and Sharon and the rest of the staff. It’s going to take me a while to process everything, to learn their internal programs. I want our contractors and customers to know this will be a seamless change.”
The Neel family’s long history in the lumber business began in 1900 when George Neel and Sons purchased a lumberyard in Rippey. One of those sons, Leonard, started Neel Lumber in Grand Junction in 1927. His son, Bob, took over the business in 1954. Bob and Dorothy Neel purchased Lake Lumber in 1977 and continued to operate the Grand Junction location until it closed in 1982.
Bob and Dorothy’s son, Tom, joined the business in 1984. Tom and Sharon met in Minnesota, where he attended Mankato State, and she attended the University of Minnesota. When they married and moved to Panora after graduation, Sharon worked for Midwest Landscaping. She joined the lumber business in 1992, taking over management of the hardware line, so Tom could focus on building materials.
Working in the lumber and construction business isn’t new to Hafner. While attending college, he worked part-time for Beach Building Center in Muscatine and transitioned to a full-time position there after graduation.
Next was a sales manager position with Moehl Millwork, a locally owned wholesale distributor of millwork products based in Ankeny. The company serves lumber dealers throughout Iowa and contractors in the Des Moines metro area. Through that position, Hafner met the Neels and has worked with them for many years.
Tom Neel says he put out some feelers to industry contacts in the past year about possibly selling the business. Hafner had, in conversation, inquired about the Neel’s succession plans, which was to someday sell. Hafner later expressed serious interest, and they started working through the details.
Bob and Dorothy Neel were among the first people to own a home at Lake Panorama. They moved into the house they built in 1979. Bob passed away in 2000. Dorothy continues to live in her Lake Panorama home, although she spends some time at Lakeside Village during the winter months. In January 2016, at the age of 86, she officially retired from her Lake Lumber bookkeeping duties.
Tom and Sharon both turn 60 years old this year and say it was never their goal to beat Dorothy’s record of working until the age of 86.
“We’re ready to slow down,” Tom says. “We hope to travel more. I want to spend more time fishing, and hunting, and laying in my hammock. I hope we can have at least 20 good years of retirement.”
Three years ago, Tom and Sharon moved from Panora to a new home they built at Lake Panorama, on a lot next to Dorothy. Their daughter Breanne is the branch manager at Lincoln Savings Bank in Clive. Daughter Emily is a graphic designer with Two Rivers Marketing in Des Moines.
While both girls worked at Lake Lumber during high school, they didn’t have an interest in being involved long-term in the lumber business.
“This is a very tough, competitive business. There aren’t many independent, locally owned lumber companies anymore,” Tom says.
Hafner recently resigned from Moehl Millwork after 25 years to take on this new opportunity as the owner of Lake Lumber. He has lived at Lake Panorama since 2000. His family consists of two sons — Drew, a junior at Iowa State University, and Ethan, who will be a freshman at Iowa State this fall — and his fiancé, Stephanie Hummel.
“We’ve always been community oriented,” says Sharon. “I think it’s great for someone who is already in our hometown to be taking over the business, rather than a corporation that doesn’t know the community and customers.”
“The Neels have established a great legacy here, and I’m humbled to have the opportunity to carry it on,” Hafner says. “I’m looking forward to taking some of the load off their plates and helping make this a positive transition for them and their customers.”
Hafner acknowledges another thing he’s happy about is the short commute. He’s been traveling to Ankeny each work day for the past three years, and for 21 years before that driving at least 1,000 miles a week.
“Now I have a 5-minute commute,” he says. “I don’t even have time to finish my coffee.”
![Building](https://d14tal8bchn59o.cloudfront.net/Pfc1PLVU28yfEdaY2lu1gtIrKNlxgbTUo0VFKazuwXI/rs:fill:960:960:1/plain/https://02f0a56ef46d93f03c90-22ac5f107621879d5667e0d7ed595bdb.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/sites/61822/photos/3885737/Building_original.jpg)
The main Lake Lumber building was constructed in 1997. In 2005, a large addition was added to the west side of the current building, which made it possible to expand the building materials showroom and add office space.
Kelvin Hafner, left, is buying Lake Lumber from Sharon and Tom Neel, who will continue working as Hafner learns the business.