Danny Gorman describes himself as someone who dislikes change. This can be seen in multiple decades-long commitments in his life.
He’s lived in Maxeys for 35 years, married to his high school sweetheart for over 46 years and, until last Monday, he had worked at the same company for 41 years.
Now, Gorman and his wife Beverly are welcoming a change that many would say has been a long time coming: a life full of Saturdays.
“He’s already enjoyed this week,” said Beverly, a retired nurse. “He’s been calling it ‘Saturday One, Saturday Two.’ I thought I needed to get my outfit out for church tomorrow, but then I realized it’s not Saturday.”
Gorman retired from his position as production manager at Conwed Plastics in Athens last week after being with the company for over four decades.
He started at Conwed as a night shift operator when he was 25 years old. As the company grew, his commitment earned promotions to supervisor and eventually to production manager.
Conwed Plastics, which produces plastic netting primarily for erosion control, sod and carpet padding, had only 21 production workers when Gorman started. By the time he retired, the company had grown to 110 production workers, with many of them being trained by him at some point during their career.
Friends and coworkers gathered for a retirement party on Monday to celebrate his time at Conwed and wish him farewell.
“When I retired, I said, ‘Y’all can ring the bell because old school is out,” Gorman said.
He credits his “old school” work ethic as being one of the reasons he stayed at Conwed so long, but he also saw the company grow and expand many times throughout his career.
The switch from a regular work week to retired life is a shift that the Gormans are still adjusting to, but they have many plans to keep themselves busy. The couple has many hobbies that they enjoy doing together, including hunting, biking, gardening and home improvement.
One of the things they most look forward to during retirement is their opportunity to travel more, starting with a cross country road trip to the Pacific Northwest this summer.
“I don’t think I’m going to miss working,” Gorman said. “I’m looking forward to retirement and being able to stay busy doing things I want to do.”
The Gormans are also involved with many community organizations, such as being on the kitchen committee at Salem Baptist Church. He also serves on the Maxeys City Council.
Reflecting on his career, Gorman said he noticed a difference in younger generations' attitudes toward work. He said that even though many people would have gotten bored working at the same company for as long as he did, this commitment and sense of responsibility is something he learned from his parents.
“I just about bet you that I could count on my 10 fingers the days I missed in my whole career that I wasn’t supposed to miss,” he said. “But that’s the way my mom and daddy were. We were just taught to do that.”
With four decades of work experience under his belt, the advice that Gorman has for those looking to start lasting careers and relationships is simple.
“Don’t sweat the small stuff,” he said. “Be willing to take the challenges, because there’s so many people that won’t.”