Successful dinner

Dear Mike:
The committee of the Mill Quarter Century Oldtimers Club (Mill QCOC) is happy to report a very successful first-annual dinner held at the Canadian Legion, with the Auxiliary Br. #29 catering.
The meal was thoroughly enjoyed—and tasted even better with the rekindling of friendships and camaraderie with fellow workers!
We paused for a moment of silence for the 96 members who passed since the last Quarter-Century meeting in May, 2008.
Next year’s Mill QCOC will be even bigger and better as the local mill will have reached a milestone of 100 years!
A lot of joint-mill development put Fort Frances and International Falls on the map in the early 1900s.
During the sod-turning in 1912 by Mayor McKenzie, Mr. Young, on behalf of Mr. Backus, said, “We may have been a long time getting ready to build, but we are going to construct one of the best paper mills that human ingenuity can build.”
Most of us 25+ year veterans have been around more than half of the mill’s existence and have seen a lot of ups and downs in our business.
We missed the first bankruptcies, early strikes, paper embargo, cutting off of our coal supply, and years under trusteeship. Since start-up in 1914, however, investment, rebuilding, remodeling, building anew, and re-investment again were the success story of our woodlands and mill.
Oldtimers, mark your calendar for May 29, 2014 to attend your second-annual Mill QCOC. We will induct the new 25-year members (those starting anytime in 1989).
The night will include memorabilia, history, photos, and displays, along with a historical speaker!
Thank you, once again, for all of your support.
Sincerely,
Bill Morrison,
Chairman, and
Wendell Stevens,
Secretary/treasurer