VALDOSTA STATE MAGAZINE 69 Ringer graduated in 2010 with a Bachelor of Science in Education in health and physical education, and while he knew that he would enjoy working with children, his construction dream remained a priority. It was something he had done since high school, and he was not ready to give it up. “When I see a bundle of lumber on a job site, to me that’s a grownup version of Legos,” he said. “I get to watch it turn into something. Similar to teaching, you get to mold something into something. You go from point A to point B and see the difference. I love being able to talk to customers and try to pull out of them what they want and then make their vision or dream a reality. It’s the most fun part of all of it.” After VSU, Ringer assumed the role of managing some of his father’s commercial properties in Eatonton; he wanted to give the construction industry a chance to recover. Managing properties turned into doing repairs and handyman work, which snowballed into Kayco Construction, which he owns with his wife, Alison. The company specializes in remodels, renovations, and home maintenance. In 2016, after having several years to get settled into his dream career, Ringer reconnected with a friend from high school who had a trailer business. That friend, Jason Green, wanted to build a tiny house, but he needed help. They decided to marry Ringer’s house building expertise with Green’s trailer skills and create a “tiny house child.” The friends set out to build two tiny houses, one for a mountain getaway in North Georgia and one to be used as an office for Ringer. It was never supposed to be anything more than that. But one day while they were building the houses outside, a man pulled up and asked if they wanted to enter their houses in a tiny house festival he was organizing in Eatonton. Jason Green and Andrew Ringer being filmed by a crew from HGTV. Andrew and Alison Ringer with their son. A tiny house from Free Range Homes.