Conn-Weld Industries celebrated its 50th anniversary Oct. 16 with a special event at its facility in Princeton, West Virginia.
The company celebrated the occasion in a variety of ways, offering guided tours that took guests through Conn-Weld’s history and recognizing longtime employees for decades of service. Conn-Weld also officially opened a new facility containing ample production space, offices and other amenities, commemorating the milestone with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
In addition, several speakers addressed guests during a formal ceremony. Homer Hickam, the author best known for his 1998 memoir “Rocket Boys,” was Conn-Weld’s keynote speaker, sharing his personal story of growing up in West Virginia and drawing parallels between Conn-Weld’s values and those of the state’s residents.
Conn-Weld owner Cliff Forrest was among those to pay tribute to late company founder Jim Connolly, whose daughter Patty Moore and son Mike Connolly were in attendance. Other Conn-Weld employees offering remarks during the ceremony were Marvin Woodie (president), Anthony Fink (vice president of engineering), Sean Weisiger (vice president of aggregates) and Anna Semonco (director of business development and marketing).
Representatives from the offices of Gov. Patrick Morrisey (R) and Sen. Jim Justice (R) were also on hand to recognize the company’s contributions to the state across a half-century.
Related: Growing together: CRH, Conn-Weld reflect on their partnership
