Humboldt born Duane Hagans did what many a student has done. He picked up a paint brush to earn money while attending classes in Sacramento. Duane painted buildings inside and out, working hard to support his growing family. Duane had met his wife Jacquee at Eureka High School, a textbook meet-cute with actual textbooks. After leaving Sacramento, the Haganses returned to Humboldt to raise their children April and Sean. Here, Duane and Jacquee built a strong scaffolding to support their family.
Duane may have started small, but in 1975, he upsized his canvas to massive bulk tanks for what was then Standard Oil. You can see the expanse for yourself as the tanks are still behind Eureka’s Bayshore Mall. The man with a brush and a solid work ethic did not hold still for long. Hagans dabbled in commercial and residential painting until landing a job at a utility. He parlayed his wide range of experience into a contractor’s license in 1993. By 1994, he was working for himself and CDH Painting was open for business.
CDH Painting was a family business from the start. Duane’s wife and business co-owner Jacquee rolled up her sleeves and picked up a calculator serving as Chief Financial Officer. Daughter April has painted her own colorful life. She sang in the Eureka High School choir Limited Edition, then went on tour with reggae/rock band Irie Rockerz. After exploring a life with a palette all its own, April found her path led back to Eureka and the family business. “I’ve enjoyed working with paint for a long time. I love taking care of buildings and all the colors. Our area is really fun for that.”
If you think CDH Painting only paints the big picture, you’d be wrong. Their attention to a simple job, the smallest they have painted to date, meant it took longer to get the paint than to complete the job. A homeowner bought a new doghouse that was not the same color as their house. Duane jokes that they wanted to synchronize “so the dog would not feel left out,” pointing out a dog’s limited range of colors (blues, yellows, shades of gray). The matching paint made the dog’s humans happy. Duane and April were also happy to note that they have painted a big man and his blue bull: the Paul Bunyan and Babe statues that flank the Trees of Mystery in Klamath.
Later in 2025, Jacquee will be retiring from CDH Painting. The hardworking business co-owner, mom and grandmother had already retired from the Eureka City Schools two years ago. In 35 years of public service, Jacquee wore many hats, including that of Senior Account Health Benefits Clerk. Duane and April are quick to sing her accolades as they enthuse over Jacquee’s contributions and celebrate her upcoming retirement. Retiring gives her more time to visit their son Sean, who traded the California Coastal Range for the Rockies, and grandchild Kaelin. “She has been the main CFO and bookkeeper since 1993. We are excited and happy for what she has done in the business and the community,” says Duane.
“She’s a high five!” adds April.
Duane’s retirement is another matter. He is candid about this generational transition. “As we progress and see how things are functioning, I will have the freedom to step aside and let April take over.” He happily relates how April helped him “move out of the stone age” when he let go of old school marketing to join the digital revolution. “We have two different eras of how things can work. If I can put myself in old dog new tricks mode, it’s helpful for April to move forward. That is the fun part.”
Duane says, “It’s a process, honestly. I don’t know how to step away so I am figuring that out. We are learning what we can do together. I’m ecstatic to see progress without me on a daily basis, but it is still my voice from experience of doing this for more than 50 years. If I’m still healthy and my voice can be heard, I will work until I don’t want to or can’t.” Even after working his way through more than 100,000 gallons of paint (enough to cover more than 6 square miles) and the eggplant purple phase of the 1980s, Duane still has energy to spare.
April chimes in, “His expertise comes with experience, products changing, how they work. He can retire eventually but not anytime soon!” She cherishes their craft. “It’s important to have ‘old knowledge’ to make the colors, or how to handle the materials like old redwood so that information is not new to you. Learning to integrate. Everyone is learning new acts and gadgets, but tradition is also special. You can’t buy it off the counter.”
Duane and Jacquee’s grandchildren have now become adults themselves. CDH Painting is now three generations deep with the addition of team members Shara Jones (office) and Samahri Brice (marketing). Calvin Brice is still testing out what path he will paint. The transitional process is ongoing.
Meanwhile, Duane is still the lead vocal and keyboardist for the Soul Seekers, a band he established in the 1960s with his brother and some local lads. Samahri crafted a path similar to her mother’s by singing in Limited Edition. Maybe you remember her Sour Kangaroo from the 2022 Ferndale Repertory Theater’s Suessical the Musical? Calvin DJs, playing music on decks instead of painting them. Shara Culture is the lead vocalist for Irie Rockerz with her lead vocalist father Stevie, who also performs as the CDH handyman. April, retired from Irie Rockerz, keeps her musical muscles toned with the Redwood Interfaith Gospel Choir. It’s a family whose joy comes out in the music they make in the redwoods.
Duane is quick to finish the sentence, “My Humboldt life is” with a hearty, “community!” He adds, “The very shop we are in right now, we have it because when I was 11 years old this is where I’d meet up with my friends to ride to Sequoia Park. It was Del Grande’s Electric then. Everything about this town is represented here, like baseball at Ross Field. All this has led to my desire to see Humboldt — and Eureka in particular — supported and encouraged. After seeing decline left and right, it makes me happy to see the resurgence. Support of local schools, teams, softball, Crabs, the Eagles — all are part of my existence that I brought my kids up into. A fun part of life. I can see the Boys and Girls Club, which was a stomping ground growing up. I gave my first live performance there, in a Parks and Recreation skit,” he recalls. “Things like that are not just reminiscent. They are an important aspect of what makes CDH Painting Humboldt.”
April added, “He put it fabulously. To add would take away. My Humboldt life is blessed. But I like what Duane said!” If and when Duane retires, CDH Painting will be in good hands. You can ask April, the little girl who loved to help her dad peel off wallpaper (after being moved to the right wall).
CDH Painting
802 Harris St, Eureka
(707) 443-4429
cdhpainting.com
This article appears in My Humboldt Life July 2025.