05/29/2026
After 38 years, Laminating Team Leader Al Monroe is retiring.
Al started on April 13, 1988, at our original Stark Rd. building. He was handed badge number 15. Today, only four active employees have a lower number!
Ask him what he's most proud of, and the answer isn't a single project; it's the steady work of learning and growing across nearly every position in the plant. "Working with your hands, creating things people can use," he says, was the part he loved.
Over 38 years, he estimates he's worked alongside hundreds of teammates. Plenty has changed in that time. Training used to be something you figured out on your own; today, it's a team effort, and that shift is what stands out most to him. The work itself? Still cabinets. Still building. The foundation is solid.
Al's advice for anyone just starting their career here: "Be open to learning."
And his parting words to the team: "I'm not good at poetry. All I have to say is, do your best."
Thank you for 38 years, Al!
Drop a comment below and join us in wishing him all the best.👇