Paper mill gave livelihoods to generations of families

FRANKLIN

Even in a town known for dealing with disaster, Thursday was an exhausting day. Franklin Mayor Jim Councill was already making plans.

He and everyone else learned that the International Paper Co. mill that has been the been Franklin's heart for generations will close, perhaps as soon as next spring.

"It's a travesty, a real travesty," Councill said. "We have 1,100 families to take care of. We want to help, sustain and find work for these people."

The news spread as quickly as the smoke from the mighty chimneys atop the plant, just across the Blackwater River from downtown.

Bruce Whichard was hunting deer when he heard. The Gates County, N.C., resident has worked at the plant for half of his 46 years - "a newbie compared to a lot of other people."

The night and weekend work is sometimes tough, but the workers have families to support, mortgages to pay, plans to make for the future.

Now, everyone has questions, Whichard said. Where will they work? How will they pay the bills? What will happen to the plant?

"Really, this is all Franklin is," he said.

In recent years, the town has seen its share of trouble - first, when the river rolled into town after Hurricane Floyd in 1999 and destroyed homes and businesses. Another flood a couple of years ago tried again to destroy everything.

"We've been hit by so many things," said Debbie Agate, having lunch in Fred's Restaurant on Main Street. "But we're really together. We'll get through this."

When the river twice tried to take over, the motto was "You can't drown a great town." The residents persevered. With this blow, some feared Franklin may not make out as well.

"The whole town is shaken up," said Fred Rabil, who has owned the restaurant since 1945. "Everybody has a family member there. We're all upset. We can't believe it."

At the plant, emotions ranged from shock and disbelief to anger and resignation. Workers walked to the parking lot clutching lunch coolers, their faces grim.

"I have two kids. My wife doesn't work," said Tommy Judkins, 41. "I just built a new house out here in Franklin."

The 16-year employee thought his job was safe. Now, he hears the paper machine he works with will go down on Dec. 31.

"The last meeting that we had, they acted like it was looking up," Judkins said.

The mill dates to the late 1800s, under the ownership of the Camp family. Union Camp merged with International Paper about 10 years ago, but the plant remained near the heart of town.

That's why most of the town was shocked when the announcement came, only weeks after the annual maintenance shutdown, when the company poured big money into repairs and modernization.

Frank Rabil knew he'd meet friends and neighbors at his father's downtown restaurant. He retired from IP, as the business is called, on Jan. 1. He got word of the closing on the golf course Thursday morning. "This is black Thursday in Franklin," Rabil said. "This is the blackest of Thursdays."

Devin Butler can't imagine working anywhere else. His two brothers also have jobs at the mill. Butler, a Windsor resident, thought he'd retire from IP.

"I'm a third generation here," the 40-year-old said. "Growing up, this was the place to work."

Butler's daughter just started at Old Dominion University and he has a 12-year-old in middle school.

"Personally, I don't know what I'm going to do," he said. "This is all I've known for 15 years."

Management was fair after the announcement was made, said Ken Brown, a 34-year employee. He felt sick, and h is boss told him to go home.

Brown told his wife about it, and then went to Fred's, where he ordered a stiff whiskey and water. He's worked at the mill since the summer of 1966, when he was a college student.

"Back then, they paid you the regular salary, instead of a temporary salary," Brown said. "I was making such good money, I didn't see any need to go back to school."

He has two children at home. His 12-year-old daughter got braces Thursday.

"For me, it's been a 34-year-long summer," he said, as he sipped the drink. "I just might go back to school now. Even the management was floored by the news."

Blake Blythe owns the local Ford dealership. He owned it 10 years ago, then retired for a while. He just bought it again, he said, and half its customers come from IP.

"We got through the flood, we'll get through this," he said. "This is a big blow, but we'll get through it."

Councill, the mayor, said he'd talked with Gov. Timothy M. Kaine's office. They told him they were planning a "rapid response, like with the Ford plant." Councill talked with several state politicians, too.

His message: "Send me a plant that needs 1,000 employees."

Linda McNatt, (757) 222-5561, linda.mcnatt@pilotonline.com

Hattie Brown Garrow, (757) 222-5562, hattie.brown@pilotonline.com