High school custodian Peter Schupp comes to Baldwin following 32 years at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette working as a mailer.
Schupp graduated from Baldwin in 1983. He first began his work at the Post-Gazette seven years later.
But unions at the Post-Gazette have been striking since last October. So after months on the picket line, Schupp started working at Baldwin High School as a custodian last March.
“I was cleaning rooms at night. I had the whole second floor, until school let out,” Schupp said.
Custodial work is a different kind of labor than working as a mailer at the Post-Gazette.
“I ran dispatch, I was a supply guy, I set up strap-up machines, tie-up machines, and I drove the forklift,” Schupp said of his old job.
As a custodian Schupp also handles a variety of tasks.
“We’ll clean up after lunch, I run the stadium, set up the field for any events, clean the school, do the garbage, and do the lightbulbs,” Schupp said.
Schupp does handyman work on the side: He hangs wallpaper, paints interior walls, and refurbishes antique furniture. His work includes rehabbing pieces like “a little coffee table people will throw away, when it’s actually nice stuff,” Schupp said.
As another hobby, Schupp gardens at home. He grows everything from flowers to his own produce like green beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers.
“I love to garden, and I have ever since I bought my house, so for most of my life,” Schupp said.
He also enjoys spending time with his two daughters and his 7-year-old grandson.
