In his prime...
Dad would be 90 years old tomorrow! Had he lived to see this, i would have hosted a big party to honor him. Since he isn't here I will instead light a candle and spend some time missing him... He passed away in Feb. of this year. On this the eve of his 90th birthday, I want to share his interesting life. Here he is pictured above with his invention, . He invented this polystyrene insulation in the 70's.
It took a while for him to try to prove and get the right interested party to pick it up and invest in this. In the early 1980's Owens Corning picked it up and is still running with this. For those of you who haven't seen this, it is used for insulation purposes. I have no idea how much product is produced internationally and here in the states per year but it's a whole lot of product!
You would think having invented such a useful and popular product my father would be rich beyond
his wildest dreams... He should have been! Talk about being scourned, he truly was and by the
industry he helped to create! When he first got to the selling and proving of this process, it is
unfortunate that he had the worst attorney around. Why this crooked / lousy attorney allowed Dad
to enter into the contract he had, I have
no idea! At the time Mom and Dad had exausted their money and energy into designing, inventing
and producing the first pilot plant. Mom slid down hills on her rump to grab test pieces of extruded
material to run density tests. My older sister did her fair share of measuring product density. My Mom always the cheerleader on days that seemed impossible, frought with gliches and frustration for Dad. I'll never forget Mom fashioning a clip for an extruder belt out of a hair pin from her hair. It did the trick and they were tickled pink...
How does what happened to Dad happen? How do you invent something like this and then live and
die flat broke? How did attorney Charlie Loverchek from Erie, PA. allow that kind of a deal to be brokered? This was my father's biggest regret and heartbreak! For a long time my Dad lived closeby the first plant built in Tallmadge, Ohio. He was so close that he could step out onto the patio and hear the plant running!
After things soured between him and UC Industries, this became a torment to his spirit. After they
retired my father he did a bit of private consulting regarding his expertise on vacuum extrusion. For
the life of me, it has always bothered me that he never tried or felt it impossible to have a good
corporate attorney look for a loophole in that contract! So freakin unfair and just plain wrong!
Dad was so intelligent. An amazing IQ. Graduated top of his class from Cornell University with a Master's Degree in Organic Chemistry. Worked as a rocket scientist at AeroJet General. Worked in Plastics at Sinclair Copper for years. In the early 70's he and Mom decided to develop his theory and create this industry.
His Master's from Cornell University
He still holds 3 patents, I have them framed ...
The best in his field...
A pioneer of this huge industry!
My dear Dad lived with the disappointment of his failed, flawed contract. He talked about it often and I could tell that it was his biggest regret! He should have been a wealthy man!
Dad was so busy when I was little. Always jetting off somewhere... I always missed him! He did however take time to do fun things with just me ... The zoo on Sundays. He took me to a really pretty stream to watch the salmon swim. He took me to his church of choice, the Unitarian church. We went
to breakfasts, just the two of us. When I was 13 he took me and my best friend to Cleveland, Ohio to my first concert to see Chicago and the Beach Boys play! It was about 2 1/2 hours each way from
Erie, PA. He sat through all of it lol...
I always knew that he loved me even though he was so busy leaving his mark upon this earth! He did
accomplish his lifelong dreams, he just didn't get the monetary compensation due him!
To say I miss him is an understatement. I missed him a lot when he was alive too! I couldn't be more proud though of his accomplishments and his true heart and spirit! Omg what a spectacular man he was!
An old pic of Dad and I at the plant in Tallmadge. Dad got to oversee the building of plants in Sweden, Germany, Korea and Kuwait as well
This was our last picture together...
These wise words that he said to me still stay with me. I was upset and frustrated and he exclaimed, "All I know is that you can't get upset about the things you can't change!"
I don't remember what I was upset about but I recall this retort! His voice clearly resonates in my head whenever I need to hear this life lesson. I didn't realize at the time nor did he, the full encompassing embodiment of these words that he grappled with on a daily basis.
I suppose Arthur L. Phipps, the Father Of Foamular, knew a thing or two about " things he couldn't change! "I love you Dad!
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