Today I’d love to share a “behind the scenes” story about a fellow Dura Supreme team member. We have a lot of long-term employees at Dura Supreme, one of them is Merlyn Schmieg. Merlyn has worked for Dura Supreme for over 47 years. When I asked him about his longevity at Dura Supreme and his commitment to the Company, he simply answered, “You just don’t stay at a place unless you have a good experience.”
In 1968, just a few months after he completed basic training for the National Guard and graduated high school he had two more major changes in his life … his new job at Dura Supreme Cabinetry and his new 1965 Chevy Impala! “I drove that car to my first day of work, it holds a lot of good memories …” Merlyn explained.
Merlyn with the original 1980’s Dura Supreme curved door proto-type.
Over the years he has played a key role in Dura Supreme’s product development and engineering departments, developing new products and manufacturing processes to ensure quality and innovation.
In the late ’80s many cabinet manufacturers began to introduce curved doors. Keith, the owner of Dura Supreme Cabinetry, had mentioned the idea to Merlyn, who had already been intrigued and pondering the idea. Inspired, Merlyn went home that day and began tinkering in his home shop. It wasn’t three weeks later, Merlyn walked in with the first prototype of a Dura Supreme curved door.
Merlyn with the original 1980’s Dura Supreme curved door proto-type
Merlyn just hung his hat up for retirement. On his last day, he surprised us all once again when he arrived in the same restored 1965 Chevy Impala that he had driven his first day 47 years ago!
We wish him the best and would like to say thank you for his time and dedication to Dura Supreme. It’s been a great ride!
