Rob Roath (Warehouse Forklift A) My wife and I had relocated our family to Dixon in August of 1995. With that came the need for me to find a job. I came to Crest 6 days later through Burton Placement as a temp. I started in the Mix Dept. at the main plant (when the Mix Department was still in the Main Plant) and really enjoyed the job and people I worked with. Around Christmas 1995 I got laid off. Then on January 21st, the day before my daugh- ter’s birthday, Jeff Friday called to offer me a permanent position. Best day of my Crest career. I still look forward to coming to work every day. I have never been prouder to work for a company. Crest Foods has a “family” in all of its employees. We are there for each other
through the good and bad times. It is a comfort to know when things in our lives don’t go as we planned that someone is there for us, supporting our “family” when they suffer from an illness, a death, birth, marriage, or any other event. To be a part of this family is an honor. There are many that come to mind when I think of the ones who made me feel especially appreciated. From Ben Fichter, who was my first boss, to the Meiners Family who helped our family take root here. And many more in between. Being part of the opening of the West Mix Facility was one of the things that was special to me. The compassion from Jerry Lawrence, Neil Henert and the warehouse crew when I was ill in 2011 was above and beyond any em- ployer had ever been. That was an especially tough time for me. It is hard to pin just one moment that is most special to me as there have been many over the years. I look forward to many more memories and years in the Crest Foods family. Thank you for giving me a place to spend my days.
Al Duthie (Technical Service Manager) I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to work this long at such a great company. And I feel doubly blessed because this is actually a return, “second” employment with Crest Foods. Previously I had worked for Crest Foods from 1987-1992 in Sales. After being gone for about 4 years I received a phone call in Portsmouth, NH (where my family and I were living) asking me if we might move to Illinois so I could work in the R&D lab at Crest Foods. By saying yes I made the best career move I ever could make! That was in 1996. I worked about 7 years in R&D and now have been in Crest Tech Service for more than 13 years.
Probably the biggest difference in comparing now with the “old” days is the progression of technology and im- provement of communication tools. We take it for granted, but it truly is amazing how quickly we can now access information to learn things so rapidly. And this leads to better service and quicker decisions. Looking back over the years no single moment stands out for me. The best part of working at Crest Foods has been a collection of memories in successfully working as part of a department team, by assisting customers with good, solid suggestions to issues, and by assisting co-workers in certain situations. And I hope to continue these memories until I retire from Crest Foods, whenever that may be.
Dan Yates (Production Floor Supervisor A West) When I started here I was a runner on line 15 and thought that I would be here for about a year and then move on to something bet- ter. In those 20 years I have worked as a Stacker, Dumper, Line Operator, Lead Mixer, Shuttle Driver, Parts Room Attendant, Sanitation Worker, Lead Sanitarian, and Ingredient Lead Mixer. There is really not much here I haven’t done. In 2006, I became a Production Floor Supervi- sor on first shift, which I still am. Looking back it, I can’t imagine working 20 years anywhere else. While I enjoy what we do here, the best part of working here are people that I work with.
6 Crest Ink January, February & March 2017
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