Empower Mark Wilkins' Veteran-Owned Business
Help This Veteran-Owned Shop Rebuild After Tornado & Illness — and Finally Bring CNC Work Home
Hi, my name is Mark Wilkins, and I’m a U.S. Veteran, a (former) Nationally Registered Firefighter, and a former High Angle, Confined Space, High Water, and Dive Rescue responder — all trained through Louisiana State University.
I spent years serving in one of the busiest rescue zones in Louisiana, between Baton Rouge and Gonzales. When I returned home to Piedmont, Missouri, the community asked me to step in as Fire Chief for a brand-new fire station in a newly formed district — which I led until they could bring in a permanent team. It’s always been in my nature to step up when something needs done.
Over the years, I’ve given all I could to others:
I’ve personally used my own heavy equipment to help unload food for the elderly in our town for over a decade — never once asking for a dime.
I helped build the Church of the Nazarene in Piedmont — including full installation of their sewage system — work that would have cost them $40,000–$50,000 had they hired a licensed contractor. I did it because it needed to be done.
I’ve answered the call during fires, floods, and emergencies — serving not because I had to, but because it was right.
I’ve never asked for anything back. But now, I need help.
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A Business Built from Scratch — Then Sidelined by Disaster
I launched Prometheus Fabrication & Machining with every dime I had. It’s a small-town, veteran-owned shop built to bring metalworking, custom fabrication, and real opportunity to the rural Midwest.
Our first investment was a professional laser cutter, and it got us off the ground. But the plan was always to acquire a Haas CNC machine so we could stop outsourcing high-dollar jobs and start doing it all right here.
So far, we’ve brought in over $6,000 in CNC work — but without the machine, we’ve had to send every bit of it out. After costs, we cleared just $25. Worse still, we’ve had to turn down over $65,000 in potential work because my neighbor — the only one around with a CNC — is completely backed up and unavailable.
We were almost there. Then came the setbacks.
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️ Tornadoes, Infection, and Two Major Setbacks
A tornado devastated the Black River Retreat area, where my business partner lives. For over a month, I put everything else on hold to help. It cost us time and money we didn’t have.
Then I was sidelined by a severe infection caused by a spider bite. I was down for two months and required surgical removal of a lymph node. The business came to a halt — again.
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What Your Support Will Fund
I’m not asking for charity. I’m asking for the final boost to reach a goal that’s already within reach.
With your support, we will purchase and install a Haas CNC machine, including:
Machine cost (used or refurbished): $25,000–$35,000
Freight & delivery
Setup & calibration
Basic tooling (vises, collets, holders)
Software/licenses
Electrical prep and site upgrades, if needed
And once it’s running, all U.S. veterans will receive a standing 20% discount on any CNC job we do — permanently. It’s our way of giving back to the community that gave so much.
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I’ve Spent a Lifetime Giving — Now I’m Asking for One Chance
I’ve always believed that if you can serve others, you should. And I’ve done that my entire life — whether it was on the job, in the firehouse, in the churchyard, or out on muddy backroads helping neighbors with food deliveries.
But now, for the first time, I need a hand.
If you believe in supporting veterans, empowering rural businesses, or backing people who actually live what they believe, then I hope you’ll stand with me today.
Every donation matters. Every share helps. Every dollar takes us one step closer to giving this business — and this community — a second shot.
And when we make it, we won’t forget who helped us get there.
Thank you for reading. Thank you for believing in small-town grit.
— Mark Wilkins
Prometheus Fabrication & Machining
Piedmont, Missouri