Staco Energy Products will honor their longest tenured employee, Mary Marshall, for her 50 years of service with a celebration reception at the Racquet Club in downtown Dayton on September 20. 

  

Marshall says that a lot has changed over the years - including the company name. Back then it was the Standard Electric Company - and the company used the Telex machine for overseas sales. Inventory was kept manually with inventory cards, and computers were "a dream come true" she says.

  

Although the name has changed and product lines have grown, Marshall says that one thing has remained constant - "working with customers" has always been her favorite part of the job.

  

"I talk with people all over the country and they are like friends to me," she said. In fact, when Marshall was planning a recent vacation, she shared her itinerary with a long-time customer who she'd never met face-to-face. "She spent two days giving me a tour of San Francisco" said Marshall fondly recalling the event.

Although women in engineering and electronics are commonplace now, that was a rarity in 1963, the year Marshall moved from Kentucky to Dayton and began her career at Staco. She is quick to point out that although there were few women in the field then, "the engineers I've dealt with over the years have been very supportive and I've picked up a few things."

Her supervisor, business development manager Paul Heiligenberg echoes that sentiment. 

  

"Mary handles our variable transformer product line - a mature product. When a question arises about an older part or product, we ask Mary and she remembers all of the details."

Company officials, co-workers, and customers all appreciate Marshall's cheerful, positive attitude. And Marshall enjoys each day at the manufacturing company. 

  

"It's been a great journey. I work with and for a lot of nice people" she says of her lengthy career, "and as long as I'm healthy and my mind's working properly, I plan to stay."

That's good news for her coworkers and the many customers that she so enjoys serving every day.