Dan Slack is unusual in today's workforce. This Schellsburg native and Chestnut Ridge High School graduate chose his career while he was in high school and stayed in his major throughout his four years at Penn State University. More than 20 years later he's working for his original employer - in the same career field he chose when he was a teenager. "In today's world you see a lot of movement from company to company and among different jobs," Slack says. "I guess my work history is a little unusual." Slack says he decided he wanted to be an industrial engineer early in life because he thought he'd like the challenges of working in a manufacturing plant - a decision he has never regretted. He worked at Hedstrom for two summers while in college and was hired when he graduated in 1979. He spent time in several departments over the years - quality assurance, industrial engineering, technical services - helping to develop and test new products and oversee new manufacturing processes as the company completely revamped its product line and added new manufacturing methods. In 1998 his experience paid off when he was named plant manager. He says his college training prepared him well. "College gave me the theory, the logic and the discipline. Without it I would never have had the opportunity to get the hands-on experience." That experience was more varied than would be expected in a career that has been spent in one plant. "We've gone through six owners in the time I've been here," he says. "Every owner brought new leaders, new ideas, new ways of doing things. In many ways, it's been valuable because I could experience lots of different methods without changing companies or moving." He says he never considered leaving Bedford County. "I like the area - all of my family is here and I place a great deal of value in that. I have also felt that I could contribute to Hedstrom - the people here are very important to me. After all, I've grown up here."

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