About Us
The love of glasswork was born long before Road Runner Glass was established. Murray was intrigued by the techniques of glass cutting, building mirror walls and furniture by a family member, who was a glazier, when he was 16 years old. From there, Murray worked side by side learning and building until starting his apprenticeship at Pacific Vocational Institute in 1979 and becoming a Certified Journeyman Glazier in 1985. There he studied designing techniques for commercial skyscrapers using glass, building glass furniture and shower enclosures along with windshield replacements.
Kaylene started etching glass in 1982 as a hobby, learning the craft from her mother. Together, they taught several classes allowing others to learn the art of etching, but with 2 small children at home there was little time to take her new-found talent any further that hobby status. A few years after a move from Southern Alberta to B.C., which in Kaylene's words in the 'artist's dreamland', she began etching again. In May 1996 Kaylene and Murray combined their talents and gave Road Runner Glass a combination of general glass repair and art.
Since the merging of their vocations, the Fosters have designed trophies, custom picture frames, mirrors, candle holders and stained glass pieces, but say that the sky is the limit as far as what their abilities will allow. Their eye for detail has not gone lost on their customers. In August 1998 Road Runner Glass was commissioned to design and create several awards for The Rocky Mountain Riders Association in Radium Hot Springs. One of the awards the pair designed was an etching of then-super-bike race champ Steve Crevier on his motorbike. When Crevier handed out the award, he looked at Kaylene and said, 'That's me, isn't it?' Kaylene felt that was the biggest compliment that could be paid.
Auto glass includes everything from recreational vehicles (including boats), daily commuters to heavy-duty trucks and equipment. Of course our passion in the auto glass is classic/hotrod glass replacement. Just as there is a great variety in auto glass, the same is for residential glass. We would like to think of us as a 'one stop shop' for residential glass, as we do everything from field glazing in the creation stage, to glass deck railings, shower enclosures, specialty glass in cabinet doors, to custom etched or stained glass to complete your home. And yes- as many have asked us - we even do mirrors.
Glenn has lived in the area all of his life, and has been with Road Runner Glass since 1991, on a full-time part-time basis and has been involved in many projects over the years. Glenn is the type of person that does not want to set his tools down at 4:30pm if the job isn't finished, willing to work into the evening if needs be in order to be able to go on to the next project the next day.
His sharp eye has been an asset to the company, as nothing is "just good enough" as it doesn't cost anymore to do it right the first time around. This quality has been shown time after time when he has been overseeing a project, or in charge of the other employees. Because of this, we are very proud to have Glenn as part of our Road Runner Glass team!
Over the past 10 years, we have been fortunate to have our grown kids working along with us doing everything from windshield replacements to sealed unit replacements as well working on the bigger condo developments. Our adult son & daughter have also been able to take responsibility when we have sent them out on jobs on their own, knowing that they have been raised with the business, and know our standards of workmanship.
We take great pride in having the opportunity to be part of preserving history in the restoration of the glass in 1992-1993 in the Curzon Car (built in 1907) and Omemee Car (built in 1906) in 1998, for the Canadian Museum of Rail Travel in Cranbrook B.C., which proved to be a bit of a challenge, as the frames were individually unique, and as a result, no template could be used for the cutting of the gothic arched glass, which were each hand-cut and ground to fit, but the satisfaction of being able to be part of history restoration outweighed the any frustrations.
Recently an etched panel in Car #621 (built in 1901) needed to be restored, but was missing pieces. Using the original broken panel as a template, Kaylene reconstructed the etching to match the existing panels in the car.
The Langham Hall, a historical building in Kaslo B.C. also required us to work on the windows, but the Caribou holds a special place in our hearts, and as such, we have supplied glass for a bed & breakfast in the historical gold rush town of Barkerville B.C. as well as a donation of a stained glass piece for a fund raiser for the Wells B.C, Historical Society.
A picture speaks a thousand words, so please enter into our various photo albums, and thank you for visiting our website!