Our journey began ages ago:

when the first cultures built underground tombs for their beloved leaders and learned to craft a vault, to the creature comforts of home established by the Dutch merchant class, and onward to the stunning skyscrapers built by immigrant craftsmen poised on the edge of modernity. Our story is just one of many: we are the folks that persevere in the belief that technical knowledge and craft in the service of good design can make something meaningful and profound. Blue Sound Construction was founded on that faith and perseverance in 2006.

ben

Company Principal - Operations

Above all else, Ben is a people person. He values his clients, colleagues, friends, and particularly his family—all five of them (four children & wife, Courtenay). His career in construction began as a union apprentice over 20 years ago, but he considers himself a life-long learner of the trades. He began Blue Sound Construction in 2006, continuing his family's 60 year legacy of building in the Seattle area, and currently serves as Operations Manager as well as Sales & Estimating. We think his grandfather would be especially proud of Ben's gift for establishing rapport among the building community via the Master Builder's Remodeler's Council and the informal roundtables he's set up with other respected outfits; Grandpa Ben once did the same.  See our Ben's resume to find out more.

Courtenay

Co-Director- Marketing & Business Strategy

Courtenay is a phantom presence on every job; her meticulous organization has been instrumental in many of our operational processes, and behind the scenes she trains and oversees our core project management systems. Our clients love her without ever knowing it. Currently she spearheads our marketing and strategic development, while pushing forward on regional trades education/workforce development initiatives. She is the 2023 Chair for the Workforce Development Task Force with the Building Industry Association of WA, and co-chair for the Technical Advisory Committee at the Seattle College’s Wood Technology Center. In 2020, she partnered with Seattle Colleges to launch the Residential Construction “earn and learn” (apprenticeship) evening course with the Wood Tech Center to help new workers transition and quickly adapt to the industry, addressing our acute skills gap in housing. With her spare time, she dabbles in geometry to better understand simple, ego-less beauty.

Derrick

Production Supervisor

Derrick has been professionally building for over 30 years. As Production Supervisor, he oversees our central value in producing excellent craft, and is tasked with continuously searching out ways to increase efficiency, safety, and consistency in our onsite production. He routinely leads our weekly safety and craft meetings, and provides a once a month “Super Craft” session focused on imparting his expertise to the rest of our team. While his love for building is lifelong (as a child he once made a castle of sugarcubes, complete with a functional drawbridge), he fell into woodworking during his first year of college at the University of Washington, and soon began selling his own furniture at esteemed PNW galleries, such as Northwest Fine Woodworking. While his career took him many directions— from timberframing to teaching woodworking through his own Puget Sound Woodworking School up until pandemic— Blue Sound is now tremendously benefited by his craft, intelligence, deep familiarity with the industry, integrity, and passion for the team.

Paco

Lead Carpenter/ Senior Field Manager

Paco is Blue Sound's longest serving employee, having been personally trained by Ben starting in 2007. Since then, his problem-solving abilities, quality-control, and on-point combination of client care and forthrightness have made him the pillar of Blue Sound's company culture.  He has actively trained most of our carpenters and is unwavering in his dedication to find ways we can improve. Clients love him, co-workers respect him, children adore him, and anyone off -the- mark fears him. To us, he is family.

Eric

Lead Carpenter

Eric is a lifelong carpenter, having worked for decades for another small builder who closed up shop before joining Blue Sound in 2021. Blue Sound benefits greatly from his deep experience and dedication; he excels at caretaking his projects as if they were his very own, lining up the schedule, and doing good, quality work, and he does it all with a kind, humble demeanor. In his spare time, he enjoys fishing and hunting— he can tell you a great deal about all the best trails in the area.

Brian

Lead Carpenter

Brian has been with Blue Sound for 7 years, contributing his passion for building, can do attitude, and high production output to every build he’s been a part of. A graduate of the Evening Residential Construction program at the Wood Technology Center, he consistently demonstrates a passion for learning and growing in his trade even outside of day to day work, and readily embraces company systems that aid success. In his spare time he is a dedicated father and lover of family, and a music aficionado who grew up adventuring in the woods of Mississippi. When asked his favorite thing to build at Blue Sound, his answer: “Everything. No matter the time, pain or labor, I enjoy every task presented to me.” Which is a taste of the huge positive influence Brian has on our entire team.

SHARLEEN

LEAD Carpenter

Sharleen got her start in property management, which fueled an interest in carpentry. She has a love of good design, excellent leadership skills, and a thirst for learning. When we met her at Wood Technology Center as she finished up her Carpentry degree, she came with highest accolades and recommendations from her instructors, and we couldn’t agree more with their assessment. She’s been in residential carpentry now for several years, is an avid acquirer of skills from metal framing systems to fluted panel installation, and graces our jobsites with her good humor, straight talking, and active collaboration. In her spare time, she shuttles her kids to water polo and jiu jitsu— because they are as awesome as their mom.

Skyler

Carpenter

Skyler grew up on Vashon Island, working in construction since as long as he can remember with his grandpa and family. He worked several years in the marine industry before jumping over to us, but we think he still looks a bit like a pirate ; )

We are grateful for Sklyer’s can do attitude, wealth of knowledge about all aspects of construction, and even keel demeanor. During summer weekends, you can find Sklyer guiding river rafting trips, and we recently had the pleasure of his safekeeping during our company party on the river this fall.