Rim Country Heuristician thinks inside the box

Photo by Mitzi Brabb

Jack D puts heart into his "birthday boxes."

By Mitzi Brabb
Gazette/Connection Correspondent

“If you want to make a difference, be the difference,” says Payson problem solver, Jack Dowlearn.

Those who know "Jack D" know him by his unofficial title of a Heuristician. In other words, he’s a problem solver. That’s exactly what is printed on his business card, even though he has been retired for five years as an engineering consultant for various firms that needed technical problem solving.

Jack D traveled throughout the country. When a company had a problem, he would fly in and solve their dilemma. Now he keeps his problem solving to a more intimate level -- simply anyone who is facing a "personal" predicament.

He related a story about a woman who was passing through Payson on a camping excursion. When she got settled into her campsite she discovered that there was a problem with a hose on her RV. Not only was she stuck in a foreign environment, but she was at a loss as to what she should do.

Ironically the “heuristician’s” business card blew into her campsite and she braved a call to a friendly stranger. Jack D told her just what she needed, as well as where and how to get it. Problem solved!

Although Jack D works part-time at Ace hardware, he enjoys his retired days on Easy Street and still tinkers with a numerous projects, including building motorcycles. Although he has only kept four of them himself, he has built 16 motorcycles over the past several years.

While still taking the time to help others with their problems, he has devoted much of his time earning smiles through another hobby. He makes hand-crafted wooden boxes that he likes to call “who-dit-is,” but to others they are simply known as birthday boxes.

“I got to piddling around with saws and drill presses one day and decided it was what I wanted to do,” said Jack D, who discovered a new way of thinking outside the box.

For nearly five years Jack D has been creating these beautiful, seamless boxes out of a single piece of wood. They are generally made from red-heart cedar or teak wood and run the dimensions of three inches tall and wide by six inches long.

Although one box may take eight to 10 hours to craft, Jack D puts his whole heart into his creations. He even made sure every lady he knew in town had one last Christmas. To date he has built 221 boxes.

“They make a real nice gift box for trinkets and jewelry,” he claims.

If he gives them away for Christmas, then why are they known as "Birthday Boxes"? It’s merely the aftermath of one of his other unique ideas. Jack D discovers the birth year of the person he plans to make a box for and then finds a coin, usually a solid Eisenhower dollar coin, and permanently secures it at the inside bottom of the box with a laminate coat, similar to a bar counter.

Jack D creates these boxes out of good-natured fun, but he also figures he’s helping someone with a problem by putting a smile on his or her face. He says he implements his base philosophy in life by passing on gifts from the heart and encourages others to do the same.

“If you want to make a difference then just pass it on," he says with a wink. "You’d be surprised what a smile can do.”