Jim Bostaph – President & Owner
Jim was born and raised in Erie, PA. He majored in classical music in college. He has been the organist for Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church in Newport News since 1993. Jim is married to Barbara Crowe; they moved to VA in 1977 and have two adult daughters. They also have 4 cats and part-time custody of their daughter’s two dogs.
Jim spent 8 years as a Realtor before opening Black Goose Chimney Sweep in 1993. He is a member of the Better Business Bureau, the National Fire Protection Association, and the National Chimney Sweep Guild. Jim is the education director for the Mid-Atlantic Chimney Association.
The National Fireplace Institute has certified Jim as a Wood Burning Specialist and the Chimney Safety Institute of America has certified him as a Certified Chimney Sweep and as a Certified Dryer Exhaust Technician. He is a graduate of the Chimney Repair Apprenticeship Program. Jim has been retained as an expert witness in numerous cases. He has taught state, regional, and national seminars on numerous topics. He is also an instructor for the Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) program. Jim is on the ethics committee at the national Chimney Sweep Guild and was appointed to the board of directors for the Chimney Safety Institute of America.
Jim’s burning desire is to raise public awareness of chimney and venting safety by bringing 21st century technology to a centuries-old trade.
Patty Arnold – Manager
Patty has been with Black Goose since 2008. She is a native of Newport News therefore she is very familiar with the face of the peninsula. Patty lives in Newport News with her husband, Dave. She has three grown children and two grandchildren who are the light of Lala’s life.
Kristin Craner – Administrative Director
Kristin has been with Black Goose since January of 2015. She grew up in Sterling, Virginia and after graduating from CNU, decided to make the peninsula her home. She and her sweet son, Blake, live in Yorktown.
Cara Floreske – Administrative Assistant
Cara recently joined our team in 2017. She is a Maryland native, with Virginia roots. She is living in Newport News while finishing up her Bachelor’s degree online at Arizona State University.
Tim Taylor- Operations Manager & Sweep Lead
Tim joined our team in 2017. He was first certified through the Chimney Safety Institute in 1991, and has received his OSHA 30 card in 2017, Tim is also a CSIA Certified Dryer Exhaust Technician as of February of 2018, he passed his NFI Gas certification as of April 2018. He is a New England native, but has called Virginia his home for over 20 years. He has two beautiful daughters, Ashli and Brenna, who are the loves of his life.
Sergey Gardner – Repair Lead
Sergey has been part of our team since 2011. He became a CSIA Certified Dryer Exhaust Technician in October 2016 and became CSIA certified in chimney sweeping in 2018. He is originally from Odessa, Ukraine, the city of laughs. Since working here he has had the honor to be part of multiple large projects. He lives in Newport News with his brother Ian.
Remy Holmes- Sweep Assistant
Remy started at Black Goose in 2016. In his spare time he enjoys listening to loud music, reading, cooking and thumping on his bass guitar. It’s been said that Remy sweeps a mean chimney!
Ian Gardner – Repair Assistant
Ian has been with us since 2015. He is a native of Smithfield, has no children. He works here with his two brothers, Sergey and Eric
Eric Malarkey – Repair Assistant
Eric started at Black Goose in 2017. He is from Smithfield, but moved to Newport News to be closer to his school, Thomas Nelson Community College. He is currently finishing up his second year at TNCC. Eric trying to get his engineering degree, while absorbing all he can about this trade.
John Kerr – Sweep Lead
John has been with Black Goose since 2009. He was first certified through the Chimney Safety Institute in 2010. He is retired Army. He is originally from Newton, Iowa. He currently lives in Newport News with his wife Shirley. He has two grown children, and five amazing grandchildren!