Memories fade as the aging process advances…Sometimes a current event rekindles the memory process….Such is the case of the most recent events related to Danaher….
It was in the early 60’s, Dan Moore was running for Governor of North Carolina…an industrial prospect came to Bladen County…The normal process is for such a prospect to arrive without any public announcement…(over time, nothing has changed). They meet with decision makers….Gather as much info as is needed to compare with other communities and head out, many never heard from again….
The officials were shown several potential sites for a ‘state of the art’ building….a showcase facility in a prominent location…There was only one site they were interested in….and the owners had no interest in selling…So, the prospect left town, drove back to Raleigh and were scheduled to fly home the following morning…
After some intense discussions by a prominent citizen who met with the owners of the property….they decided, for the good of the community and county, they would make the property available. Calls were made to Raleigh to delay the trip home….Two Elizabethtown men flew to Raleigh, with topographical maps and other info that had been ask for….and discussion related to Veedor Root locating in Bladen County began and produced the marriage of a company looking to expand and an area that needed jobs.
Governor Moore was the speaker at the dedication, Veedor Root President William Stauble was back in Elizabethtown. Several Leer Jets delivered numerous company executives to the Fayetteville airport. It was a festive occasion and a corporate marriage…Veedor Root and Bladen County. The company has provided a paycheck for so many.
I was a young man working for a member of the Bladen County EDC board and President Stauble’s chauffeur…I believe only one of the original “movers and shakers” is still living…and he would not want to be identified….That is how a new industry was born.
As a very young man, I received an education….how a few good residents could make a profound difference for many in the community and few knew what happened…I was just a chauffeur… .and a lucky young man to have been exposed to a lesson about a few community-minded residents making Bladen a better place to live, work and play.
Veedor Root continued for 20 plus years before selling to Danaher, another very good corporate partner….
Civic education and civic responsibility should be taught in elementary school.
If you can dream it, you can do it. Walt Disney
You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream. C.S. Lewis
robert g hester
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