I am Ernest H. Sickles. I was born in Bellaire, OH in June of 1987. Albert O. Sickles was my father. I remember many different things about the glass shop when I grew up. I never met my great-grandfather and I did get to spend lots of time with my grandfather (Sonny). We did lots of fishing and all the fun stuff. As I grew up my grandfather was retiring and instead of putting the burden on me and my sister for the debt of the glass house it was sold and my dad went out on his own. My grandfather added on to his garage and made a small workshop there. My dad went on to work for Olgebay in the Carraige House Glass building. As I got older my dad got sick from diabeties and my grandfather passed away. I was never encourged to learn about the art. Instead my dad always wanted me to do something "Better". So I graduated high school went to college and got a degree. In applied science to, imagine that anyway's my dad passed away at the end of march in 2008. I was really devastated and just didn't understand where my place was or where I was supposed to be. I ended up moving back home and leaving a pretty good job so I could be back home. I started to read about all the different things about glass and never realized how much there was to it. The history, the art, the people. I really got interested and started to practice. I still practice today on weeknights and weekends with the hope of someday being good enough to produce some of the same amazing things that my family made. I have all the ambition I just need the practice and the ability to be able to start the business over again.
