Terry Weaver has found a special way to turn scraps into success.

He's the president of USA Gypsum, a Reinholds company that recycles drywall trimmings into soil-treatment products.

So instead of contractors sending tons of drywall scraps to the landfill as waste, USA Gypsum converts them into useful commodities — and jobs.

The firm has had such a positive environmental impact that it has been named Outstanding Green Small Business by the national SCORE Foundation.

Weaver, 55, started his company in 1998, after working for years in the farming industry.

He grew up on a poultry and livestock farm in Lititz and worked in poultry and swine housing construction until the late 1990s.

Weaver also owned hog farms in Franklin County, where the agronomist, now Sen. Mike Brubaker, mentioned a unique idea one day.

Brubaker suggested trying to recover gypsum from drywall to improve soil quality.

"(He) pointed out the fact that lots of drywall was being thrown into landfills while farmers were buying gypsum that was being mined and imported from Nova Scotia to improve their soil," he said.

Weaver said he was interested in the idea of recycling drywall, but he didn't want to rush into anything.

He spent about six months researching whether he could create a viable business.

"It was intriguing to take something that was waste, something that people were discarding, and turn it into something that was of value and a product people could use," he said.

His research indicated that his idea of recycling scrap drywall was a unique concept.

"There may have been one other company doing it at the time, and they were in Canada," he said.

Convinced his new business had potential, Weaver opened a small plant in Leola in 1998.

In 2000, USA Gypsum relocated to its current address at 1802 Texter Mountain Road.

Today, USA Gypsum serves mostly agricultural clients, supplying gypsum to farmers within a 350-mile radius of Lancaster County.

Farmers buy gypsum as a soil amendment, conditioner and fertilizer.

The company also sells gypsum for lawn and garden use, for animal and poultry bedding and for industrial uses such as paint filler and road patching.

USA Gypsum employs eight full-time workers and processes about 20,000 tons of drywall annually.

While sales topped $2.6 million last year, Weaver noted that it wasn't smooth sailing from day one.

"We started very small at first," he said.

His initial suppliers of drywall were manufactured housing companies, which had drywall scraps to get rid of.

"It took awhile for our markets to develop and for people to accept the idea of reclaimed drywall as a substitute for mined drywall."

Over time, USA Gypsum expanded its sources to include local construction companies such as Benchmark and High.

With the support of contractors, numerous high-profile projects around the county have generated scraps for USA Gypsum.

Drywall trimmings have come from construction of the Millersville University fine arts center, the Lancaster County Convention Center and projects at Franklin & Marshall College and Brethren Village.

Additionally, the company picks up drywall scraps from many local residential builders.

It also works with consolidators in large cities from Boston to Washington who collect drywall that the company picks up.

As the company grew, Weaver knew he needed some financial guidance.

He found an ally in the Lancaster chapter of SCORE, and specifically in Lou Davenport.

Davenport had worked for Armstrong World Industries for 35 years, most recently as assistant treasurer for international operations.

"Lou has been an invaluable resource for me," Weaver said. "He has helped me with everything from budgeting to forecasting.

"I'm a big fan of SCORE because people like Lou are giving back to their community and providing a tremendous amount of experience to small companies like mine — who couldn't afford to hire a consultant — for free."

Impressed with Weaver's vision and business model, Davenport nominated the company for the national SCORE Foundation award.

"I've been working with Terry Weaver and USA Gypsum for about five years now and during that time I've seen them turn the business around from one that was muddling along to one that's been growing in terms of sales and profits and employment," Davenport said.

"They are clearly a real success story in terms of long-term sustained growth."

He said he also was motivated to nominate the company because he appreciates Weaver's willingness to seek help when he needs it.

"He's a classic example of an entrepreneur who knows the numbers of his business like the back of his hand and uses that information to constantly focus on opportunities for improvement," he said.

"He knows how to use external resources like the Small Business Development Center at Kutztown University or the Chamber of Commerce or SCORE to improve his business process."

When Davenport learned of the national awards, he decided to nominate USA Gypsum — and he didn't tell Weaver until the application had been filed.

When Weaver learned his company had won, he was completely surprised, he said.

Davenport wasn't.

"I was hopeful they had a chance to win, and I thought his business was a classic example of a successful green business," he said.

Only seven awards were given by SCORE, with just one winner in the Outstanding Green Small Business category, so Weaver said it was quite a thrill to win.

He and Davenport traveled to New Orleans for the awards ceremony in August.

"It was an honor to be there," Weaver said. "It was a big stage to be on for a small business guy with a farm background like me.

"There were 400 or 500 people there from around the country, so I got to meet a lot of people and a lot of the SCORE mentors who contribute their time to these businesses," he added.

The award was presented at a black-tie gala, Davenport said.

"I had the pleasure of putting on a tuxedo and standing on that stage next to Terry at this very upscale, very beautiful affair," he said.

"He's a very deserving award-winner in my book. I wish I had a thousand clients like Terry."