Childhood hobby turns into career in architecture

“As a kid, I really enjoyed drawing. And I remember hearing my parents always say, ‘Oh, here’s our little architect.’ So I guess that stuck with me. Because when it was time to decide what I wanted to pursue I thought, let me try it out and see if it works. And it did. I’ve been an architect for 20-plus years now.

“Putting a set of drawings together and watching things get built is a pretty satisfying experience. Right now, my company mostly works on retail centers. In fact, we’re doing a few on Garth Road in Baytown. While those are fine, I especially have enjoyed working on school projects in the past. Taking those schools from design all the way through construction, from beginning to end, is a really interesting process. Plus, in the end, you see the positive impact those facilities have on the students. That really makes all the long hours and hard work worthwhile.”

— Jesse Garcia