Software to hardware: Former Bothell residents buy Tekoa Hardware store

Lee Burchfiel bought Tekoa Hardware June 1 after spending 16 and-a-half years working in software in the Seattle area.

It was the bus ride from Bothell into downtown Seattle that did it.

It took Lee Burchfiel to his job in the I.T. Department of Nordstrom, after 15 years working for Amazon and Microsoft.

But that commute ultimately took Burchfiel, his wife Kelsey and three daughters to Tekoa, where he is the new owner of Tekoa Hardware.

“In Bothell, I’d work on projects around the house almost every weekend. I had to do something with my hands to keep my sanity,” he said. “After working all we...