Back in the day: Lawrence Frey

“When I was first featured in SignCraft,” says Ray Sauder [Raynbow Signs, Palmerton, Ontario, Canada], “I mentioned the signpainter who dug an old lettering quill out of the garbage can and poured me a baby food jar of dark green One-Shot enamel to launch my career in signs—at the tender age of 13! That was the late Lawrence Frey, who had a shop in the area, Frey Signs, since the mid-1950s.”

Many a sign painter can recall the first signpainter they watched and how it set the stage for their own career behind a brush. Watching that brush make perfect letters so effortlessly can make a big impression on a young person. In Ray’s case, his dad took him along when he stopped in to see Lawrence about some sign work for the company he worked for.

“I remember the experience as plain as day,” says Ray. “I remember the company vehicle that he was lettering, the other signs that were in the shop, and how he made those letters with the brush. Once I started looking for his work I could pick it out all over town. He was always my hero, though I never worked with him.”