Document 8VOD70V8Kj86NVQdmmQOJryQk

45th Annual Quarter Century Club and Service Awards Dinner by Susan Gardner On Tuesday, December 3, 1996, employees and retirees gathered once again at the Holiday Inn in Oxford to celebrate the 45th Annual Quarter Century/Service Awards Dinner. The guest speaker for the night was George Smith, writer for the Anniston Star. Everyone enjoyed an evening of reminiscing with past and present co-workers. This year it was decided to invite all retirees, not just 25 year members, to the dinner. Several non-Quarter Century Club Members came and it was great to see them all. The highlight of the evening was the presentation of service awards and the induction of one new member to the Quarter Century Club. The following awards were presented by Jack Mayausky, Plant Manager: 15 Year Awards - Randy Cobb, Mike Gallahar, Glenn Higgins, Joe Ransaw, Cathy Scott and Joe Whitfield 20 Year Awards - Drew Childers, David Norton and Ellen Phillips 25 Year Award - Ed Bowles 30 Year Awards - Dan Cooley, Charles Curry, Jim Degner, Charlie Owen, Don Robertson, Phil Robertson and Larry Willingham 35 Year Awards - Jesse Abernathy and Melvin Womack Members and visitors browsed through some old photographs on display. And, as always - THE SPIRIT OF THE ANNISTON PLANT LIVES ON!!! . Morepictures inside..... DSW 133975 STLCOPCB4033933 45thAnnual QuarterCentury Club andServiceAwards Dinner(continued)... Oct/Dec 1996 DSk 133976 STLCOPCB4033934 Bama Briefs Page 3 Letters to the editor are welcome at all times. Anyone wishing to demonstrate their hand at writing articles will be greatly appreciated. If you or anyone you know (especially family members and retirees) has successfully accomplished a task that is newsworthy, please send a writeup to the editor for publication in the next Bama Briefs. Thanks for your help and we look forwarding to hearing from you. Having Fun an the Bayun Jack and Beverly Stevens recently attended an Elderhostel sponsored by Nicholls State University at Thibodaux, Louisiana. Elderhostel is a program for seniors 55 or older who attend classes (no homework, no tests) and activities at college cam puses around the country. The courses offered in this program were "Raisin' Cane in the Bayou," "Cajun Cooking" and "Cultural Landscape of New Orleans." Jack really enjoyed "Raisin' Cane." He couldn't help comparing the sugar mill, which converts the cane into raw sugar, to the Monsanto, Anniston Plant. A tour of the mill was reminiscent of the old Aroclor department -- ancient and nasty. Talking to Dr. Robert Falgout, an expert in sugar cane, Jack learned that methyl parathion was tried on the cane to combat sugar beetles; but it was "too hot." However, Monsanto herbi cide is used for weed control in the fields. After attending classes describing the sights of New Orleans, Jack, Beverly and other group members embarked on an all day trip to the Crescent City. The highlight of the trip was a 15-block walking tour where they were shown the land marks that were discussed in class. Free time in the city was spent in the French Market an shops along Bourbon Street. Professional chefs demonstrated Cajun cooking; then the class cooked their own lunch from a prescribed menu with the chefs supervising. The best part of the meal was a bread pudding topped with a sauce liberally laced with Southern Comfort. There were some happy old codgers on campus that day!! Jack and Beverly Stevens "Raisin' Cane" down on the Bayou! Besides the continuing education opportunities and the friendly knowledgeable instructors, a big part of the Elderhostel program is meeting other seniors with like interests from all parts of the country. It is a program that Beverly and Jack highly recommend. Oct/Dec 1996 DSW 133977 STLCOPCB4033935 Bama Briefs Jack's Comer WE Reflect on 1996 The past year has been a great year for the Anniston plant. We achieved OSHA VPP re-certification and accomplished a streak of 544 days without a recordable injury. Always working towards an incident free work place. We are progressing well on several major environ mental projects. These ensure the operability and longterm viability of our site. We've attended well to our relationships with our community by providing information regarding our issues, along with substantial financial, technical, and human resources to charitable organizations and schools. Always working towards earning designation as a good corporate citizen. We have delighted our customers by continuing to prove that we are a timely and dependable supplier of their needs. They acknowledge our efforts by continuing to purchase high volumes of our products. We've completed all of our required training both regulatory and process. This ensures that we each have the skills required to do our jobs to the best of our abilities. We have competed over a million dollars worth of cost effective capital projects. Each focused on ensuring improved operability of our systems. We have exceeded our corporate objectives of maintaining our costs within budget. Ensuring the success of the businesses which we support. A lot of hard work went into these accomplishments and my sincere thanks to each of you. Its time for to pause, reflect on what we have done individually, be proud and be prepared for a new year. Festivalof Trees Page 4 Monsanto was actively involved in the first annual Calhoun County Festival of Trees this year. The festival has already been held for a number of years in Atlanta and Birmingham, as well as other major cities in the U.S. and is usually sponsored by the Children's Hospitals. This year, the Kiwains Club decided that the county needed a signature event to kick-off the Christmas season and at the same time provide a fundraising opportunity for several non-profit or charitable organizations. Through the Salvation Army, Monsanto took an active part in coordinating the large tree displays for the festival. Several trees were auctioned during the event with funds going to the Salvation Army for their 1997 budget. The funds will be used to help people in need in our community. Susan Gardner and Dale McCartney volunteered to decorate a tree Sponsored by Monsanto that was auctioned during the event. There were several compli ments on how well the tree looked and it brought the highest bid at the festival. This type of community involvement demonstrates how Monsanto continually contributes to the community. Oct/Dec 1996 DSW 133978 STLCOPCB4033936 Bama Briefs Page 5 MMK 10/25/96 SERVICE AWARDS October - December Jim Degner 30 Years Continent-Wide Blood Drive On December 3, 1996, the Monsanto Anniston Plant participated in a continent-wide Monsanto/Red Cross Blood Drive. This was the first ever continent-wide blood drive connecting our Monsanto locations together for a common cause which directly benefits our communities and helps save lives. Thanks to the following people who took time to donate and help give THE GIFT OF LIFE: SWEET REVENGE Have you ever hungered for a little sweet revenge? When Lady Sarah Graham Moon was dumped by her aristocratic British husband, she got even with her unfaithful spouse--with a passion. First, she poured gallons of paint on his cherished BMW while it was parked in his girlfriend's driveway. A week later, she cut four inches off the left sleeve of 32 of her husband's custom-tailored Savile Row suits, each costing about $1,600. The following week she gave away 60 bottles of her husband's finest wine. Her exploits got the attention of the press, projecting her into somewhat of a celebrity status. One lady wrote to share how she cleaned the toilet with her unfaithful husband's toothbrush, then watched with delight when her husband brushed his teeth. Of course, none of these acts compare with the sweet revenge of Vera Czermak. When she learned that her husband had betrayed her, she became suicidal and decided to jump from their third floor flat in Prague. Surprisingly, she survived the jump, because she landed on her husband and killed him instead. True story! . --The Houston Chronicle Dan Blackstone Bob Borders Ed Bowles Wayne Carden Jack Chapman Donald Clement Randy Cobb Charles Curry Lamar Freeman Kevin Gann Susan Gardner Bill Harness Jerry Hopper Gerri Kelly Charles McCartney David Norton Doug Rich Donald Robertson Rusty Self Judge Stringer Bryan Thrasher Martha Weaver Tracy Weaver Melvin Womack Perspective If you look at life one way, there is always cause for alarm. --Elizabeth Bowen Safety Performance As ofDecember 9th As ofDecember 13th 544 Days Since Last Recordable Date ofLast Recordable - 06/13/95 0.0 Total Injury Rate (TIR) 1 Contractor Recordable Injury 1 Days Since Last Recordable Date ofLast Recordable -12/11/96 ~2.2 Total Injury Rate (TIR) 1 Contractor Recordable Injury Oct/Dec 1996 DSk J.33979 STLCOPCB4033937 Bama Briefs Page 6 Confined Space Rescue Team Training On Wednesday, November 20th, the fearless members of the Confined Space Rescue Team underwent training as required by OSHA. The training consisted of classroom and field training. Classroom training on safety, knots, ropes, rigging and haul systems was covered. The field training had two main sessions. The first was repelling and haul system practice at the old acetone column. Since none of the members volunteered to repel from the top of the column, we confined the training to the first level and bottom floor. The other field session consisted of practicing on how to rescue a victim from a vessel typical to the plant. This included practice with anchoring points, haul systems, rigging applications, entry and working in the vessel with supplied air line respirators, preparing the victim for extrication and removing the victim and rescuer from the vessel. It was a very good training session and allowed the rescue team members to identify areas of training to focus on for next year. Anthony Pettis working in the vessel. Anthony Pettis glad to be out! 1 Oct/Dec 1996 DSW 133980 ......... STLCOPCB4033938 Bama Briefs Page? r" Mike Gallahar entering the vessel. Apply yourself The following bloopers were culled from college applications: I was abducted into the National Honor Society. Mathematics has hung like a stork around my neck. I want a small liberal in the northeast part of the country. I can read, speak and write Greek fluently. My other two sports are tennis and volleyball. At night we stayed in a youth hostile. I want to be fully bilingual in three or more languages. I have never been to New England, but from what Tve heard, it is a beautiful country. --More Anguished English by Richard Lederer H U M R The Jewish express line Probably the worst thing about being Jewish during Christmastime is shopping in stores, because the lines are so long. They should have a Jewish express line: "Look, I'm a Jew, it's not a gift. It's just paper towels." --Sue Kolinsky The 'other' reindeer A classroom full of children was singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" last Christmas when a second-grade boy asked why the other reindeer had a funny name. The teacher asked the student which reindeer he was talking about and the boy said, "You know, Olive." The teacher went through the names of the reindeer; Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Blitzen, Comet, etc. and said to the boy, "there is no reindeer named Olive." When the teacher asked the student where the other reindeer was named in the song, the boy sang, "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, had a very shiny nose. OLIVE the other reindeer..." --The National Education Association Cliches Where do cliches come from? My grand father says, "You just tell a couple of jokes, and you're riding the gravy train." First of all, it's hard to write jokes. Second of all, what is a gravy train? I didn't know they were actually hauling gravy by rail. People gather around big mounds of mashed potatoes waiting for the 5:15 gravy train to show up? --Rich Hall 1 wont into a general store. They wouldn't let me buy anything specifically. --Steven Wright Oct/Dec 1996 DSW 133981 STLCOPCB4033939 Bama Briefs '0 Christmas Tree!!! Page 8 It's a family affair - everyone seemed to want to help get the Christmas tree up this year. Thanks to everyone who helped!!! Then there were three!! (Lamar, Jerry and Alan Rutherford). Don't try to hide, Alan. Ed Bowles - "I know there's a light loose somewhere, which one can it be?? Oct/Dec 1996 The finished product!! DSW 133982 STLCOPCB4033940 Bama Briefs Page 9 H The case of the too-tight halo An annoyingly self-righteous man went to the doctor. "I feel terrible/' he told the doctor. "Please examine me and tell me what's wrong." "Let's begin with a few questions," the doctor said. "Do you drink too much?" "Alcohol?" the man said. "I'm a teetotaler. Never touch a drop." "How about smoking?" "Never," the man replied. "Tobacco is bad and I have strong principles against it." "Well; uh, how's your sex life?" "Oh, no," the man said. "Sex is a sin. I'm in bed by 10:30 every night--always have been." The doctor paused, looked at the man, and asked, "Well, do you have pains in your head?" "Yes," said the man. "I have terrible pains in my head." "Okay," said the doctor. "That's your trouble." "What?" "Your halo's on too tight." --A Treasury of Humor The worker's dilemma What Employers Want Partnership Affordable, competitive benefits Job flexibility Compensation linked to business. individual performance Commitment What Employees Want Security Benefits security Job security Pay security Commitment What Employers Say What Employees Hear We believe in shared responsibility We are partners with our employees Our actions support our business and our employees We have challenges ahead Change is inevitable Company, individual performance affect total compensation Benefits are part of compensation We want to offer you choices Health care costs are critical Employer should sponsor health care coverage It's another cutback This partnership has one partner--the employer The employer acts in the best interest of the company I have to give up something I'll lose again Benefits are a right Pay varies by individual I have to pay more to keep what I have The company is still profitable Employer should sponsor healthcare coverage --Results of "How to Make Employers Care About Health Care" study of 1,000 employees working for employers with at least 1,000 employees by Towers Perrin. Results as reported in Syzygy. Oct/Dec 1996 A young boy was bumped while getting on the school bus and sustained a nasty cut on his cheek. Later, on the playground, he collided with another boy and had two teeth loosened. At noon, he fell and broke his wrist while sliding on the ice. At the hospital, his father noticed the boy was clutching a quarter in his good hand. "I found it on the ground when I fell," explained the boy. "It's the first quarter I ever found. This sure is my lucky day!" --Leadership Taking initiative Have you got a problem? Do what you can where you are with what you've got. --Theodore Roosevelt DSW 133983 STLCOPCB4033941 Bama Briefs Bill Bamboozler " Page 10 HEALTH & SAFETY THOUGHT / Unsafe SHORT CUTS will backfire in the LONG RUN! BAMA BRIEFS NEW S The Bama Briefs is a Periodic Publication for Fmployees, Retirees and families ol the Anni1 > m PI riti Pit. i iiNiw Inlo'ii i i nl features about MonsanU I ipl PI ml Pi <ilui . 11 Pi! el u Mannci that will Pi online a Peeling oKioodvi ill. Pride andUndcrslanil- BULK RATE U.S. POSTAGE PAID ANNISTON, AL PERMIT NO. 836 Monsanto ( onipanv 300 Birmingham Highway Anniston, Alabama 36201 EDITOR SUSAN GARDNER ASSOCIATE EDITORS ALAN RUTHERFORD LAMAR FREEMAN Diane Herndon 3&&P- r Equal Employment Opportunity Policy The Anniston Plant views its Equal Employment Opportunity Policy as a major commitment and important business goaL Accordingly, we wiU continue to recruit, hire, train, and promote qualified persons without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or veterans status, except where there is a bonafide occupational qualification. Promotional decisions, as well as, programs such as compensaton, benefits, transfers, layoffs, training, education, tuition assistance, and social and recreational activities will continue to be adeministered in accordance with theprinciples ofequal employment opportunity. Oct/Dec 1996 DSW 133984 STLCOPCB4033942