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West Texas Fireplaces offers warm, comfort for the home

By Melissa McCaghren

Slatonite GM

Steve Respondek had been cleaning fireplaces for years, as part of his father’s business – A&A Chimney Sweeps.

“My dad started a chimney sweep business in 1981, just to make extra money,” he said, adding his dad worked at Texas Tech which offered good benefits, but not same  pay.

He helped his dad, first part time, then full time and eventually took over the business.

After moving back to Slaton to an old farm about eight year ago, customers and businesses  asked him to open a store.

And that is how West Texas Fireplaces, located at 118 W. Garza St. in Slaton, came to be.

It opened in October.

“We had a lot of people going – and builders wanting us to open a store because we took care of our customers and did good work and been doing it forever,” he said.

But there was a delay in building it for a few years, “I’ve always thought about opening a store and just never did. Didn’t have time because I was running the company by myself,“ he said. “Then a couple of years ago we started talking about it and drove by and saw this building for sale.

“And so we called and talked to the gentleman who was selling it and it was … I mean, God just lined it all up – honestly, just beause I wasn’t planning on opening the store, it’s always just been an afterthought,” he added, saying he bought the store.

For more information, please read the Thursday edition of The Slatonite.

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