Rehard retires from Jones Metal after 50 years

| March 18, 2016
Retirement: Larry Rehard retired from the Jones Metal Products Co. where he worked for 50 years. Beacon photo by Josie Sellers

Retirement: Larry Rehard retired from the Jones Metal Products Co. where he worked for 50 years. Beacon photo by Josie Sellers

WEST LAFAYETTE – When Larry Rehard graduated from high school he knew he was headed for Jones Metal, but what he didn’t know is that it would be 50 years before he left.

Rehard graduated from Ridgewood High School in 1965 and started at Jones Metal on July 12, 1965.

“I was 17 when I graduated so I had to wait to start until I turned 18,” he said.

He enjoyed the jobs he did there and working on the various products that the company produced over the years.

“I love to work with my hands and it was something different every day,” Rehard said.

Some of the jobs the company had while he was there were for aircraft parts, cookware such as Emerald Ware, pizza pans for Little Caesars and sterilization pans for hospitals.

“In the late 80s we also made parts for a new tank and were running 24-7,” Rehard said.

One of the biggest changes Rehard saw during his days at Jones Metal was the introduction of computer technology.

“It made it better for the operator,” Rehard said. “After you got it set up it was automated and you just had to push a button. I just looked at computers as a challenge. We had to keep up with what was new so we could keep going forward.”

He officially hit his 50 year mark on July 12, 2015 and was honored by the International Association of Machinist with a 50-year pin and plaque. The IMA also marked his retirement, which was on Feb. 29, 2016, with a gold watch. Rehard now also is a life time member of the union.

He said he will miss the people he worked with, but felt it was finally time to move on.

“I enjoyed the majority of the people I worked with and liked Ed Mulligan who had owned the company,” Rehard said. “He and I got along real well.”

When asked what kept him in the same place for 50 years, Rehard’s response was, “You have to enjoy your job or you can’t make it. I was always putting dye on the press or tightening or loosening something. There was always something a little different than the last time you did it. That place was my life for 50 years.”

For his retirement, Rehard received a silver plate from Jones Metal, which is not the typical retirement gift.

“They do clocks now, but when my father retired that’s what he got and so did my father-in-law,” Rehard said. “I wanted the same thing.”

That plate will be displayed in his home, which he now will have more time to work on renovating.

“He has a honey do list too,” said his wife Cheryl.

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I started my journalism career in 2002 with a daily newspaper chain. After various stops with them, I am happy to be back home! I graduated from Coshocton High School in 1998 and received a Bachelor of Arts in Communication in 2002 from Walsh University. I also earned several awards while working for daily papers, including being honored by Coshocton County’s veterans for the stories I wrote about them. I am honored and ready to once again shine a positive light on Coshocton County. I also am the proud mother of a little girl named Sophia!

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