wpostServer: http://css.washingtonpost.com/wpost
Keeping his head above water Frank Firetti, co-owner of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas, has seen his business contract because of the economy but he’s made adjustrments.
Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas, at a residential pool his company built in Gainesville. Firetti's business has fallen dramatically in the past few years because of the economy and the uncertainty of an election year. He has tried to compensate by building more elaborate pools and raising his company's business rating with the Better Business Bureau from an F under previous ownership to an A-minus.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Related Content
Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas prepares to place a pool cover in his truck. Once just a salesman, he is now forced to do it all for a company that has been trimmed from 24 employees to six. He manages day-to-day operations, sells pools, designs them and helps supervise construction.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti, co-owner of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas, works out of his truck between job sites. He spends several hours a day in his truck or car, driving from his home in Purcellville to make sales calls across the Washington region.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Joann Firetti, Frank's mother-in-law and a former school teacher who taught herself to keep the books for Blue Haven Pools, updates the status of a job on the company's white board in Manassas.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Scott Mullinix, a construction manager and Blue Haven Pools' most loyal employee, sets down packages outside the office Frank Firetti at Blue Haven Pools in Manassas. Mullinix briefly considered looking for other work when the economy slowed but decided to stick with Blue Haven.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas designs the schematics for a new pool in his office. “A small mistake here can cost you thousands in the field,” he said.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti, co-owner of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas, rushes across the office. Once cramped with employees, the office now has several empty desks.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti picks up his daughter Talia, 7, from after- school care in Sterling. Firetti picks her up and takes her to dinner every Thursday because his wife, Suzette, works late that day. “If work is stressful and hard, she can always make me laugh,” he said.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Talia, 7, and Frank Firetti say a prayer before a meal at a fast food restaurant. The father and daughter dine out together every Thursday night and go to church most Sundays. Frank always keeps a Bible on his coffee table at home and in his car, and he likes to read and annotate the book when his faith needs restoration.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti helps his daughter, Talia, age 7, with her pet gerbils at their home in Purcellville. Talia has piles of toys that fill part of the family's living area. They had planned to move to another house on three acres in Purcellville, but now they are waiting until the economy improves.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti, co-owner of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas, has a hard phone conversation with an associate while on site at a Woodbridge pool recently built by his company.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Construction manager Scott Mullinix and Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools remove a pool cover that needs replacement at a property in Gainesville. They had hoped to celebrate good business years by traveling together with their families to the Bahamas, but now neither man has had a decent vacation in a few years.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools cleans debris from the filter of residential pool in Woodbridge that was recently built by his company. He is a former construction worker who knows how to build the pools that he sells.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Marti Bensen speaks with Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools at the pool his company built in Gainesville. Like many Blue Haven customers, Bensen had recommended Firetti to her friends because she was so pleased that his pool had become a great gathering place for her family.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti (in blue) looks over the construction of a pool in Potomac, Md., that is being built by his company. He loves visiting his construction sites and sometimes chronicles the process with his own blue digital camera.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools in Manassas, takes photographs at residential pool built by his company in Potomac, Md. Firetti compiles photo albums of the pools he builds to keep as a company record and to show off to potential customers on his sales calls.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank Firetti of Blue Haven Pools surveys a custom residential pool built in Gainesville, Va., that was built by his company. The pool owners liked the shape of the pool because it reminded them of angel wings.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank and Suzette Firetti spend a weekend afternoon relaxing with drinks on the deck of their Purcellville, townhouse.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Tyler Firetti steps out from the first story living space where he resides in his parent's townhouse. Firetti, 19 -- he turns 20 on Oct 10 -- lives at home to save money. The space, which was once used for storage, was converted into a bedroom for Tyler by his father, Frank.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
The Firetti family departs their townhouse in Purcellville on their way to dinner on Sept. 29.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
Frank, Talia and Suzette Firetti go to dinner together in Ashburn. They have cut back on dinners out since the economy slowed. “But sometimes you need to give yourself a break,” Frank said.
Bonnie Jo Mount
/
The Washington Post
FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES
MLB power rankings
Barry Svrluga assesses the best teams in Major League Baseball through Thursday.
Photos of the day
Buddhist Wesak festival, prisoners-of-war reunion, bridge collapse, world’s largest Lego model and more.
Flexing their muscles
Dozens of bodybuilders came out to Silver Spring to compete in the 2013 Musclemania Capital Tournament of Champions.
???initialComments:true! pubdate:10/06/2012 20:06 EDT! commentPeriod:14! commentEndDate:10/20/12 8:6 EDT! currentDate:5/25/13 8:0 EDT! allowComments:false! displayComments:true!
Section:/national
Loading...
Comments