What is being built by this business? In the case of one Kansas company, it might be decorative metal railings for a Big 12 football stadium or for Oklahoma City’s Bricktown entertainment district. These are among the key projects of this entrepreneurial company in rural Kansas.
Ted Bender is founder and owner of Bender Steel in Whitewater, Kansas. He grew up between Newton and Hesston, and took agricultural education classes at Moundridge from agricultural instructor Larry Goering. Here he learned to weld. That skill would become the basis of his career.
During the following years, Ted worked for a local manufacturing company and for various local farmers, including Mr. Goering. Then Ted married his wife Amy and moved to the Whitewater area, northeast of Wichita.
In 2003, Ted started his own business, primarily doing farm equipment repair. He also had a hay business and traded in antique tractors.
Continue reading “Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Ted Bender, Bender Steel”
