BY KEITH LIPPOLDT
klippoldt@gbtribune.com
When he was just a young boy growing up in Kansas City, MO, Tom Barnes was intrigued by fireworks. To him, fireworks was what dreams were made of.
“My big dream was to work in a fireworks stand,” Barnes said. “While I was a little guy in Kansas City, there was one down the block from me. I was so small I would walk or ride my bicycle down there. It just fascinated me. The next year, it was a mile down the road, so it was harder to get to. Finally, it just got so far away that I didn’t see it anymore so, it went away. But it was always in the back of my mind.”
But, without an “L”, there is no “T&L.” Fortunately, Tom met Linda Ross, now his wife of nearly 60 years while in high school and the two married in August 1965.
The couple stayed in Kansas City until 1970 when Tom, who worked for Ruskin Manufacturing, accepted a position with Ruskin in Great Bend. The couple sold their house in KC and headed to Great Bend. The Ruskin facility was still being built and not yet in operation. So that gave Tom an opportunity.
“After we moved out here, I saw an ad in the Great Bend Tribune,” Tom recalled. “Here’s a deal that mentions fireworks. I could work remotely while the plant was being built. There was no problem building a fireworks stand.”
Just that quickly, T&L Fireworks was born.
“Our first fireworks stand was made from paneling,” Linda said. “You know that real flimsy wood paneling? We built a stand from that and put roller skates underneath it so we could move it into the garage each night. It worked pretty well.”
As the years went by, their daughters Christy (Kuhn), then 7, and Kathy (Kaiser), 5 at the time, became business owners, themselves, running a lemonade stand next to the fireworks stand. They even installed a wading pool for those who needed to cool off. Today the daughters and their families are major pieces of the T&L business.
Now preparing for their 55th year in business, T&L is much more than a crate on skates.
“We now have three locations,” Linda said. “We have two locations in Great Bend and one in Larned.”
There have been several changes in the business since T&L began operations in 1970. The industry has become more advanced in quality and safety of the products. And the retail prices have not changed tremendously as has happened in nearly every other business category.
“They’ve gotten a lot better,” Tom said. “The technology is better. Safety is better. But another thing is the colors. The new colors are so much brighter and brilliant than they were when we first started.
“If you look at the same item from years ago, the prices really haven’t changed. But there’s items that are so much larger and so much better. They do cost more than anything back then, but it’s because the size is like 10 of the ones from before.”
Another advantage to shopping T&L is, since they order for so many businesses, they order more often than most in the area and they can pass on their low pricing - and low tariff pricing this season.
“We are going to be able to give our customer our usual, really low prices,” Linda said.” Because we didn’t have to pay high tariffs on our first orders on our first containers. They’re ridiculous now. We’ve still got three containers on the water, so I don’t know what those prices are going to be when they get here.”
The business that means the most to the Barnes’ is the First Christian Church in Larned. Nearly 10 years ago, the church approached the Barnes’ about selling fireworks as a fundraiser.
“When the first Christian Church in Larned first started out with us, they were needing a fundraiser because they needed a new elevator for the church,” Linda said. “We set up a plan that was beneficial to both of us, and they’ve just been really great to work with. It has developed into a real friendship over the years.”
After 55 consecutive years, any chance the T&L name will be going away soon? Not a chance with two daughters, five grandchildren – Ashley, Tyler, Katie, Cara and Brady - and four great grandchildren – Gannon, Colton, Harmony and Jaylin working in the business already.
“They’re very knowledgeable – they know what everything does,” Linda proudly said of her grands. “They’re able to show anybody what it is they’re looking for. They are definitely great. They’re able to show you where you need to go to get what you’re looking for.”
The Barnes’ are founding members of the Kansas Fireworks Association, the voice of the Kansas fireworks industry. The KFA promotes safety in the design and use of all fireworks.
Fireworks are available for purchase in Great Bend from June 27 through July 4.
