06/01/2026
Forty years ago, the future of our family — and the business — looked uncertain.
The company my grandfather had built over decades had closed its doors. My father was working there at the time, and I still remember riding to school with him as everything unfolded. I was in high school, and like any kid, I was worried about what came next.
Most people saw the end of a company.
My father saw something different.
Having grown up in the business, he had a front-row seat to both the brilliance and the struggles of the original company. My grandfather was incredibly talented — an engineer, designer, machinist, and problem solver who instinctively understood the needs of the plumbing repair market. He built the first stem guides, created systems for identifying hard-to-find parts, and assembled a “library of parts” that was unlike anything else in the industry.
But my father also saw the mistakes. He saw the challenges that came from rapid growth, partnerships, and the lack of long-term business structure.
In many ways, he had the unique opportunity to stand on the shoulders of giants — learning not only from what had been done right, but also from what could be done better.
He wasn’t focused on the machines or even the inventory. What he believed in was the value of the knowledge that had been built over decades — the drawings, the valve bodies, the original samples, and the accumulated understanding of how to solve repair problems others couldn’t.
He believed that couldn’t be recreated.
So in 1986, my parents took out a second mortgage on their home and purchased the assets of the company. That’s how Barry E. Walter, Sr. Co. began.
From the beginning, my father believed in stewardship, managed growth, and long-term thinking. He invested in technology, capability, and building something that would last.
That mindset still shapes who we are today.
As we continue expanding our building, adding machines, growing our team, and developing systems like ONA, we’re reminded that none of it exists without the decision my parents made 40 years ago to start over and build something again.
We’re grateful they took that risk.
-Barry Walter Jr
