Middlefield man dreamed of being artist

Creativity shines through in repainted village mural

MIDDLEFIELD -- William "Bill" Mast was constantly drawing as a child.

"I'd get in trouble in school for drawing instead of paying attention to my schoolwork," Mast, 60, said.

He was born in Warren, the fourth child of eight to John and Geri Mast. His father died, but his mother still is active in the Middlefield community.

The family moved several times within northeast Ohio during his early years, eventually settling in Middlefield by the time he was in the seventh grade.

Mast had a Mennonite upbringing as his father was raised in the Amish community.

Mast met his wife, Jeanie, while in high school, and she was 15 at the time.

They married in 1982 and made their home in Middlefield, raising two boys of their own -- Greg and David.

His father drove a concrete mixer and helped Mast get his first job in concrete. Mast made his living in concrete construction doing flatwork, driveways, basement floors and sidewalks. His sons have followed him into this line of work. His wife is a supervisor at the license bureau in Chardon.

A fifth-grade teacher noticed his artwork and asked him to do a project for a conservation assignment.

"I came up with an idea, and I painted a mountain in the distance, and then on this side of another mountain I painted a horse with an Indian kneeling on the ground next to it, and in the ground was an arrow. I made the feathers on that a certain color, and I made the feathers on his arrows a different color because I did know that different tribes had different colors on their arrows," Mast said. "She sent it in to a national conservation contest for school kids, and about three months later she told me that I was to meet her on the stage in the auditorium. She told me she sent it in and that I had won. They had an award for me and some money."

The same year, a project in their art class involved the class repainting ceiling tiles that had been water damaged. That project made the news.

As happens to many, life's winding roads aren't a straight path, and dreams often are put on hold.

"I got out of school, got married, had kids and it just never struck my interest anymore. If I drew anything, I would draw a stick figure. I thought I lost the ability. About nine years ago, an old friend of mine was asking why I didn't draw or paint anymore," Mast said.

This conversation stuck with Mast and just a few days later, he felt compelled to get some paints and canvas and start painting.

"The first one came out real well, I was amazed. That was almost nine years ago and I've been painting ever since. It's been fun," he said.

Mast's creativity is not limited to drawing and painting.

"I built probably 25 hot rods. We'd buy old cars and fix them up, new body work and paint. They turned out really nice. If I found something that I thought I could fix up, I bought it and fixed it up whether it was a lawnmower or a bicycle, and then I'd sell it and move on to something else," Mast said.

In January 2022, Mast tried his hand at snow sculpting.

"A few years ago, one winter I made two race cars out of snow ... and that's what caught the mayor's eye. People on Facebook were arguing over whether they were real," he said.

So, when the village decided that a mural in the center of town needed redone, Mast came to mind, and he was happy to contribute to the community he loves.

He has painted to show appreciation for others' accomplishments.

"Another thing I did, John Force, he's the number one racer in drag racing," Mast said. "One year I decided I was going to paint a race scene for him. I had no idea how I was going to get it to him, then I went to a race they had in Orwell."

People were bringing things for him to sign and Mast took the painting, which at first Force thought was for him to sign. Mast assured Force that he painted it for him as a tribute.

"He was really excited and he told his PR guy that it would go in his racing museum in California, and it's hanging there, where thousands of people go every year to see it," Mast said.

The Coast Guard is the only military branch without its own museum, but work is being done to establish one.

"I am currently working on a ship. I love painting postcard ships and boats. The one I'm working on now it's a 4-foot canvas, and it's going to be the Coast Guard cutter 'The Sherman' and if they accept it, it's going to be in the new museum in New London, Connecticut, where they're building a first museum for the Coast Guard," Mast said.

He and his wife enjoy taking in the scenery when they travel.

"We've been to Maine, we've been all over the eastern, and some of the western states. We go up to Maine and take a lot of photographs and come back and use them in my paintings," Mast said.

Everything is a potential for a painting. Just before the pandemic, Mast and his wife went to Denver, Colorado.

"I love the mountains, it's probably one of my favorite things," he said.

"Jeanie's been my inspiration, she's been my biggest critic, and my greatest critic," Mast said.

He credits his wife with having the eye to see the last little touch that should be adjusted.

Mast's next big project could be writing a book about his life.

To suggest a Saturday profile, contact Features Editor Burton Cole at bcole@tribtoday.com or Metro Editor Marly Reichert at mreichert@tribtoday.com.