John Henry marks 50th year at Colfax Security

Fifty years ago today (Oct. 3), John Henry walked into the office of Colfax Security on Main Street in Colfax.

“I’ve been in the same place doing the same thing for the last 50 years,” he said.

Henry and his wife, Agnes, moved here from the Tri-Cities where Henry was working with mutual funds and investments.

“The business came up for sale and this seemed to be a better opportunity,” he said.

Henry grew up in Colfax and at one time his father, Bo Henry, owned the business, but sold it. John Henry bought it from Claude Edgren. He noted that the original owner was Walt Talbot.

Agnes worked in the office for 19 years and then retired to play golf, John said. She passed away in 2009.

Henry said he’s seen a lot of changes through the years.

“We used to wear a suit and tie year round, even when it was 90 degrees,” he said. “We stopped doing that and we got to take our ties off on Fridays.”

“We always worked from 8 to noon every Saturday and from 8 to 5 Monday through Friday with some appointments at night,” he said.

When he began in real estate, homes here were selling for $5,000 to $7,000. He’s had a real estate broker’s license for more than 40 years.

“I’m not going to quit,” he said.

“You’ve got to keep moving and you’ve got to keep your mind going.”

Henry turned 80 in April.

Henry was active in scouting and is a past president of the Colfax Chamber of Commerce. He also is a member of Rotary and the Masonic Lodge.

Henry has two children, Scott, who lives in England, and Todd, who lives in Missoula. He has four grandchildren, two of them attending universities and two of them in grade school.

“I want to thank the people of Whitman County and Colfax and I appreciate all their support through the years,” Henry said.