American Woodmark celebrates 35 years in Orange

Not only was last week the annual employee appreciation week for employees of the Orange American Woodmark plant, but it was also their 35th anniversary celebration.
All week long, the plant held events for its employees including a catered breakfast on Monday, kettle popcorn on Tuesday, a catered lunch on Wednesday and an ice cream social, horseshoe tournament, baking contest and baby photo contest on Thursday. The plant also held raffles all week where employees could win a television, tickets to a football game or maybe even a much sought after Nintendo Wii System.
Many community members attended the lunch on Wednesday which was started off by the American Woodmark choir, introduced by plant manager Mike Stickles. The choir is a singing group formed by plant employees who rocked the tent by singing "What a Mighty God We Serve."
Orange Mayor Henry Lee Carter was also present at the lunch and addressed the group with a brief history about the plant.
According to Carter, who mentioned that he got his information from resident Duff Green, the plant site originally began in the early 1900s as the West Virginia Timber Company before becoming the Rapidan Railroad Company. In 1928, Kentucky Flooring bought the site and sold it Orange Wood Products, a saw mill, in 1947. It remained a saw mill, which was taken over in the 1970s by Boise Cascade until a deal was completed in 1980 between Cascade and Bill Brandt, Al Graber, Jeff Holcomb and Don Mathias which turned it into American Woodmark Corporation.
According to a Stickles, the plant has since grown into one of the largest companies in Orange County. It now employs approximately 200 people.
Carter expressed his gratitude, and the gratitude of the town council, for the plant and its workers, thanking them for the work they do and expressing hope that the plant will stay here and give jobs to local people.
Stickles said he is proud of the relationship that the plant has with its employees and the community.
"American Woodmark is proud to mark 35 years of success and history in Orange," he said. "It is through the hard work and dedication of our employees, and the support of our community, that we continue to grow. We look forward to the next 35 years of excellence."
American Woodmark Corporation, located in Winchester, VA, is the third largest manufacturer of kitchen and bath cabinets in the United States. Offering approximately 380 cabinet lines in a wide variety of designs, materials and finishes, American Woodmark products are sold through a network of dealers and distributors and directly to home centers and major homebuilders.