Business Connections for Winter 2020

WINTER 2020 7 // Business Connections Russell Deters grew up in Nemaha County and worked on farms as a teenager. He was also one of the top running backs in Kansas during high school. “I was offered a football scholarship to college, but I turned it down to move to Denver and hang Sheetrock in commercial buildings. I wasn’t there very long. I quickly figured out the city was too much for me. I’m a homebody and wanted to go back to Kansas,” Deters said. Deters settled in Seneca and ended up purchasing Seneca Furniture at 401 Main Street from a couple in town who were ready to sell. “I wanted to do something to make a difference. I’m not afraid of working hard—it’s the work ethic I learned from my dad while growing up. I had to figure out real quickly how the furniture busi- ness worked. We sank before we floated, but kept at it,” he noted. Deters added, “I remember the banker telling me in the early years, ‘There’s no way this furniture store will work.’ But I proved him wrong. I’ve been in business for 30 years. I help make people’s homes look nice, and I think that does make a difference. It’s a passion for me. I’m also a collectible nut, and I display my collections at Seneca Furniture to help decorate the store. It makes for a unique shopping experience for our customers.” Other than running Seneca Furniture, what does Deters enjoy most about Seneca? He replied, “I love the people in this community and the beauty of Northeast Kansas. I also love the change of seasons. I’m here to stay.” In this magazine, we periodically highlight people in our community whose career path brought them back to their roots in Northeast Kansas. For this issue, we feature Russell Deters, owner of Seneca Furniture. Russell Deters Returning to Your Roots