Keeping the Faith

Spray Foam Magazine – Winter 2021 – In 2016, Danny Walker was not in a good place. He had a substance abuse problem and was essentially homeless. However, those dark times were not to last and soon hope entered when Walker was given a chance by someone who believed in him. The Spray Foam Magazine team caught up with Walker to ask how spray foam helped save him and why giving back to the community is so important to him.

Until recently, Walker worked for Foam All Spray Insulation & Concrete Lifting in Marine City, MI. Before he started working there, things were very different for him. Rewind several years and Walker had many people in his life disowning him. He was trapped in a vicious circle of keeping company with the wrong kind of people and a habit that was extremely hard to break. Soon his life was spiraling out of control. The lowest point came when he was arrested. Luckily, the judge offered Walker community service and that’s when things drastically changed in a more favorable direction.

The judge told Walker that he could get double hours of community service if he helped at a special weekend event. Every year, the festival Maritime Days takes place in Walker’s local town. Walker’s duties were to pick up the trash and to empty garbage cans, but he found the work unchallenging and asked for additional work to keep his mind occupied. He spent these hours evaluating his life. Reflecting on this moment Walker said, “I didn’t have anything in the world, all I had was myself. I knew if I wanted to make a change, I must do it myself. I ended up working hard and had a ton of fun that weekend. I even worked extra hours.”  

The weekend was over, Walker got his extra hours and a good review from the judge, and went on his way. Over the next year Walker got clean and started to rebuild a relationship with his family and moved back into the family home. 

The summer of 2017, the Maritime president called Walker to tell him, ‘What a shining example he is of someone who has turned their life around, and can he host the program this year for the next group of kids.’ Walker agreed, but all of the kids did not show up, so all the duties fell on him. This uphill struggle did not go unnoticed by the presidents of the event, Bob and Melisa Blanchard. Melisa also happened to be the secretary for Foam All.

Melisa Blanchard told Walker to call Garry Spencer, the owner of Foam All at that time. Walker called and Spencer told him where to show up. The company has since gone through a buyout, and the owner now is Doug Howard. Walker comments, “I was actually the first person at Foam All to get certified through the SPFA as a master installer. I was with Foam All for over four years and I loved it there.”

Foam All sprays closed-cell foam, so Walker spent most of his time on either newly constructed homes, remodels, pole barns and crawl spaces and spraying exterior walls. Walker emphasizes, “That’s their focus, closed-cell foam. They do offer cellulose, but they try not to do fiberglass and they don’t do open-cell.” He also likes the opportunity to get creative with foam saying, “At Foam All we also sprayed things like parade floats and even snowmen for store fronts and this year we sprayed a massive pumpkin.”

When Walker is not spraying, he has two side businesses. On December 3, 2020, Walker fell through a pole barn ceiling and shattered his heel and while he was off work the idea of Ice Box Novelties came to mind. By April the business was up and running. He’s currently working on an ice cream truck that will be ready next year. Walker’s ice cream business is also officially the first ice cream vendor ever allowed in his local state park. An achievement Walker and his family are very proud of.  

Scuba diving is Walker’s other side business. Walker and a friend, Jon Rasho, love the diving community in the Michigan area. From river diving to treasure hunting. As they started sharing posts of the things they found on their diving adventures, people started reaching out to them and they soon became a dive service. From fixing plumbing issues on boat houses to pylon removal. Both extra jobs are in Walkers after hours with Rasho taking charge of the diving business and Walker’s wife managing the ice cream business when he is spray foaming.

Being part of a church is also very important to Walker and his family. He serves as a leader for elementary grade children at his ministry and aims now to be a good influence for the younger generation. Walker emphasizes, “It helps to keep us adults learning if we can teach the kids. It really is a service to others. I’m in love with serving, whether its serving ice-creams, spraying foam and making customers happy, removing pylons, or teaching kids. Basically, being neighborly and giving back to the community.”

Walker recently took another big step in his career when someone approached him with the opportunity of taking over their spray foam business. Although he will miss the great people at Foam All, he knew it was time to start his own business. His new company, Colony Insulation, will be focused on closed-cell applications for residential and commercial contractors in addition to offering blown cellulose too. Walker stated, “Foam All gave me the freedom to explore my trade on a personal level and I will always be thankful to them. Their support allowed me to become passionate about my work and evolve into a true professional. I understood spray foam to be an art and it has been my artistic outlet ever since.”

The spray foam industry will always be a positive aspect in Walker’s life, and he will always recognize the fact that someone in the industry spotted his potential, and he hopes to carry that faith on by serving others. Walker’s love for his family, his wife, Elizabeth, his eight-year-old daughter, Serenity, and the latest addition, baby Hannah, are what drives his love and ambition, and spray foam was the positive key that unlocked the door to what is an amazing turn around.

Congratulations Danny Walker from everyone at the Spray Foam Magazine team.