Today he’s a substitute teacher, but 14 years ago Mr. Jim Stanfield and his wife owned a manufacturer’s representative business called Te’Cera Group. This company contracted with small factories in furniture and textile industries and sold custom and high-end furniture in Missouri, Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska.
Mr. Stanfield began his business career working with Hallmark Cards. He became the director of purchasing for the Crown Center project in Kansas before becoming a furniture salesman. Once he decided to open his own manufacturer’s representative organization, Mrs. Anna Stanfield worked by his side as the financial officer of the company. They both took care of paperwork and held meetings with customers.
Eventually Mr. and Mrs. Stanfield made the choice to sell their company when their small factories began to be bought out by larger companies.
“We saw that as an end to our business,” Mrs. Stanfield said.
Mrs. Stanfield went back to the corporate business world after they sold the company. Mr. Stanfield attended Washington University in St. Louis to study religion and receive his masters degree in history of religion. He says he had the privilege of studying with the top scholars of world religion, and one of his professors was an orthodox Rabbi.
“I’ve always been really, really interested [in religion]. My father was a baptist preacher,” Mr. Stanfield said.
In his mid-50’s, Mr. Stanfield began teaching social studies and English at Fern Ridge High School for 11 years before retiring. Once he retired, he began substituting at Central.
“I absolutely enjoy messing with the minds of teenagers. There is nothing more fun than the intellectual exchange with the curious adolescent mind,” Mr. Stanfield said. “You don’t know how much fun I have when I sub. I get to play with the kids, and not grade papers. We can talk about issues, how to write, etc.”
Mr. Stanfield works with his wife now, and has since they began their business together. He says he “thoroughly enjoys being with her.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a man work harder than in his first three years teaching,” Mrs. Stanfield said.
When Mrs. Stanfield was in the corporate world, she wanted to regain the common interest they had years earlier when they worked together on their business. This choice led her to apply at Central for a secretary position. She began as a secretary to assistant principal Dr. Mitchell, then to Mr. Dallas, as well as the attendance secretary.
“I wouldn’t be doing it if it wasn’t fun,” Mr. Stanfield said.