Excerpts from the May, 1995 speech given at the 80th Birthday Celebration of Ruth Arlene Benker Balon Counts. Good information about Ruth and her father Charles Benker:
Please be seated.
Welcome to this 80 birthday celebration for Ruth Arlene Counts. My name is Keith Balon. The lady we're going to talk about this afternoon is my mother. At this time I'd like to introduce Ruth's daughter, and my sister, Ruth Ann Welko.
In the next few minutes we're going to review Ruth Counts from all sides, past, present and future.
This all began last year when Ruth Ann and I were talking on the telephone and decided we'd like to put this event together. The big question was, do we try and surprise mom or do we tell her what we're going to do. After much discussion we decided that mom would like to participate in the planning of this birthday party and that could be a lot of fun for her, so, we would tell her. At that point Ruth Ann's comment to me was, YOU tell her! So, I called on the telephone and told her I was planning to come up here for her birthday (I live in Tallahassee, Florida) and that Ruth Ann and I were planning a little party for her, at the Civic Center. After a long pause she said; Well my birthday isn't until next May, do we have to wait that long? At that point, I knew everything was going to work out just fine.
There are a lot of folks in this room that have known Ruth for a few years; some for many years. Myself, I've known her for 52 years. She happened to be there when I was born. Ruth Ann has known her for a long time too, but we won't say how long.
We thought it would be fun to take a moment and go back to the early days and maybe tell you something about Ruth that you didn't already know.
So, let's take a trip back in time.
Ruth is of German decent, with both her maternal and paternal grandparents coming from Germany to the United States around the year 1880. Both sets of grandparents settled in Buffalo, New York. Ruth's mother, Charlotte Hoffmann, was an only child. She was born in 1893. And Ruth's father, Charles Benker, was one of 9 children. He was born in 1892. And it came to be that Charles Benker and Charlotte Hoffmann were married in 1914 and shortly after, moved from Buffalo to Detroit. On May 14, 1915, Charlie and Charlotte Benker gave birth to their only child, a baby by the name of Ruth Arlene Benker. Now, about that same time, Ruth's father Charlie Benker and four his friends, went into business together and founded a small tool and dye company that designed and manufactured aircraft parts. Of course, the aviation industry was in its infancy at that time. The name of the company was called EX-CELLO Tool Company and was later changed to EX-CELLO Corporation. Now the name EX-CELLO, may mean something to you folks that have lived in the Wixom and Walled Lake area for some time. Back in the late fifties, EX-CELLO built a plant right over here on Ladd Road in Walled Lake. It was Ruth's father who was responsible for picking the sight and for construction of the plant. We'll talk a little more about Ruth's father in a minute.
Ruth was raised in Highland Park, a suburb or Detroit. She was born in 1915 and in 1919, her family moved into a house on Geneva Avenue. Ruth's father lived in that same house for 57 years.
When Ruth was but five years old her mother died of tuberculosis, leaving a young child in the care a single parent. Her father decided the best thing to do was find a housekeeper who could help care for his young daughter. And in 1922 he did just that. He found a widowed housekeeper who also had an only daughter. The girls were the same age. These two girls grew up as sisters, even graduating from high school together in 1933. Ruth's sister, if you will, Dorothy Benson, is here this afternoon. I'd like her to stand up and be recognized... Dorothy Benson.
After graduating from high school the sister's parted company. Ruth remained at home and took care of the house for her father. The relationship with her father became even closer in those years. They did EVERYTHING together, from going grocery shopping to changing the oil in his Model "T" Ford. To give you a little more insight on her father, at the time of his funeral in 1976, I had an opportunity to spend some time with one of his business partners; one of the five men who co-founded Ex-Cello. He told me a most interesting story I'd like to share with you this afternoon. It dealt with a trip made to Toledo, Ohio to look at a machine that could convert heavy paper into large envelopes. These envelopes were then sealed in wax to make them waterproof. The inexpensive envelopes could then be used to package aircraft parts and keep them dry at all times. Remember, there were no plastic bags at that time. They looked at that machine and then studied it closely. Then, one of the partners came up with an idea, completely different from the original idea of packaging aircraft parts.
If they could make a waterproof envelope, they could make a waterproof carton and if they could make a leak proof carton, why not package milk in it. At that time milk came only in glass bottles. So when they came back to Detroit they drew up the plans and made a machine that would produce a leak proof milk carton. They received a patent on it and later sold the manufacturing rights. Now, I can remember when I was a child, taking my fingernail and scraping the wax off the milk carton. And you may remember the milk carton used to have a flap in the center, near the top. When you raised that flap it exposed a hole from which the milk poured. But, you always slopped it down the front of the carton. They made two modifications in later years that brought about the milk carton as we know today. First, they went from a wax coating to a plastic coating to keep it leak proof and second they changed it to a... "side opening carton" which automatically provided a pouring spout. So, the next time you open a carton of milk I know you'll be thinking about this lady sitting right over here.
.
Please be seated.
Welcome to this 80 birthday celebration for Ruth Arlene Counts. My name is Keith Balon. The lady we're going to talk about this afternoon is my mother. At this time I'd like to introduce Ruth's daughter, and my sister, Ruth Ann Welko.
In the next few minutes we're going to review Ruth Counts from all sides, past, present and future.
This all began last year when Ruth Ann and I were talking on the telephone and decided we'd like to put this event together. The big question was, do we try and surprise mom or do we tell her what we're going to do. After much discussion we decided that mom would like to participate in the planning of this birthday party and that could be a lot of fun for her, so, we would tell her. At that point Ruth Ann's comment to me was, YOU tell her! So, I called on the telephone and told her I was planning to come up here for her birthday (I live in Tallahassee, Florida) and that Ruth Ann and I were planning a little party for her, at the Civic Center. After a long pause she said; Well my birthday isn't until next May, do we have to wait that long? At that point, I knew everything was going to work out just fine.
There are a lot of folks in this room that have known Ruth for a few years; some for many years. Myself, I've known her for 52 years. She happened to be there when I was born. Ruth Ann has known her for a long time too, but we won't say how long.
We thought it would be fun to take a moment and go back to the early days and maybe tell you something about Ruth that you didn't already know.
So, let's take a trip back in time.
Ruth is of German decent, with both her maternal and paternal grandparents coming from Germany to the United States around the year 1880. Both sets of grandparents settled in Buffalo, New York. Ruth's mother, Charlotte Hoffmann, was an only child. She was born in 1893. And Ruth's father, Charles Benker, was one of 9 children. He was born in 1892. And it came to be that Charles Benker and Charlotte Hoffmann were married in 1914 and shortly after, moved from Buffalo to Detroit. On May 14, 1915, Charlie and Charlotte Benker gave birth to their only child, a baby by the name of Ruth Arlene Benker. Now, about that same time, Ruth's father Charlie Benker and four his friends, went into business together and founded a small tool and dye company that designed and manufactured aircraft parts. Of course, the aviation industry was in its infancy at that time. The name of the company was called EX-CELLO Tool Company and was later changed to EX-CELLO Corporation. Now the name EX-CELLO, may mean something to you folks that have lived in the Wixom and Walled Lake area for some time. Back in the late fifties, EX-CELLO built a plant right over here on Ladd Road in Walled Lake. It was Ruth's father who was responsible for picking the sight and for construction of the plant. We'll talk a little more about Ruth's father in a minute.
Ruth was raised in Highland Park, a suburb or Detroit. She was born in 1915 and in 1919, her family moved into a house on Geneva Avenue. Ruth's father lived in that same house for 57 years.
When Ruth was but five years old her mother died of tuberculosis, leaving a young child in the care a single parent. Her father decided the best thing to do was find a housekeeper who could help care for his young daughter. And in 1922 he did just that. He found a widowed housekeeper who also had an only daughter. The girls were the same age. These two girls grew up as sisters, even graduating from high school together in 1933. Ruth's sister, if you will, Dorothy Benson, is here this afternoon. I'd like her to stand up and be recognized... Dorothy Benson.
After graduating from high school the sister's parted company. Ruth remained at home and took care of the house for her father. The relationship with her father became even closer in those years. They did EVERYTHING together, from going grocery shopping to changing the oil in his Model "T" Ford. To give you a little more insight on her father, at the time of his funeral in 1976, I had an opportunity to spend some time with one of his business partners; one of the five men who co-founded Ex-Cello. He told me a most interesting story I'd like to share with you this afternoon. It dealt with a trip made to Toledo, Ohio to look at a machine that could convert heavy paper into large envelopes. These envelopes were then sealed in wax to make them waterproof. The inexpensive envelopes could then be used to package aircraft parts and keep them dry at all times. Remember, there were no plastic bags at that time. They looked at that machine and then studied it closely. Then, one of the partners came up with an idea, completely different from the original idea of packaging aircraft parts.
If they could make a waterproof envelope, they could make a waterproof carton and if they could make a leak proof carton, why not package milk in it. At that time milk came only in glass bottles. So when they came back to Detroit they drew up the plans and made a machine that would produce a leak proof milk carton. They received a patent on it and later sold the manufacturing rights. Now, I can remember when I was a child, taking my fingernail and scraping the wax off the milk carton. And you may remember the milk carton used to have a flap in the center, near the top. When you raised that flap it exposed a hole from which the milk poured. But, you always slopped it down the front of the carton. They made two modifications in later years that brought about the milk carton as we know today. First, they went from a wax coating to a plastic coating to keep it leak proof and second they changed it to a... "side opening carton" which automatically provided a pouring spout. So, the next time you open a carton of milk I know you'll be thinking about this lady sitting right over here.
.
Excerpts from the May, 1995 speech given at the 80th Birthday Celebration of Ruth Arlene Benker Balon Counts. Good information about Ruth and her father Charles Benker:
Please be seated.
Welcome to this 80 birthday celebration for Ruth Arlene Counts. My name is Keith Balon. The lady we're going to talk about this afternoon is my mother. At this time I'd like to introduce Ruth's daughter, and my sister, Ruth Ann Welko.
In the next few minutes we're going to review Ruth Counts from all sides, past, present and future.
This all began last year when Ruth Ann and I were talking on the telephone and decided we'd like to put this event together. The big question was, do we try and surprise mom or do we tell her what we're going to do. After much discussion we decided that mom would like to participate in the planning of this birthday party and that could be a lot of fun for her, so, we would tell her. At that point Ruth Ann's comment to me was, YOU tell her! So, I called on the telephone and told her I was planning to come up here for her birthday (I live in Tallahassee, Florida) and that Ruth Ann and I were planning a little party for her, at the Civic Center. After a long pause she said; Well my birthday isn't until next May, do we have to wait that long? At that point, I knew everything was going to work out just fine.
There are a lot of folks in this room that have known Ruth for a few years; some for many years. Myself, I've known her for 52 years. She happened to be there when I was born. Ruth Ann has known her for a long time too, but we won't say how long.
We thought it would be fun to take a moment and go back to the early days and maybe tell you something about Ruth that you didn't already know.
So, let's take a trip back in time.
Ruth is of German decent, with both her maternal and paternal grandparents coming from Germany to the United States around the year 1880. Both sets of grandparents settled in Buffalo, New York. Ruth's mother, Charlotte Hoffmann, was an only child. She was born in 1893. And Ruth's father, Charles Benker, was one of 9 children. He was born in 1892. And it came to be that Charles Benker and Charlotte Hoffmann were married in 1914 and shortly after, moved from Buffalo to Detroit. On May 14, 1915, Charlie and Charlotte Benker gave birth to their only child, a baby by the name of Ruth Arlene Benker. Now, about that same time, Ruth's father Charlie Benker and four his friends, went into business together and founded a small tool and dye company that designed and manufactured aircraft parts. Of course, the aviation industry was in its infancy at that time. The name of the company was called EX-CELLO Tool Company and was later changed to EX-CELLO Corporation. Now the name EX-CELLO, may mean something to you folks that have lived in the Wixom and Walled Lake area for some time. Back in the late fifties, EX-CELLO built a plant right over here on Ladd Road in Walled Lake. It was Ruth's father who was responsible for picking the sight and for construction of the plant. We'll talk a little more about Ruth's father in a minute.
Ruth was raised in Highland Park, a suburb or Detroit. She was born in 1915 and in 1919, her family moved into a house on Geneva Avenue. Ruth's father lived in that same house for 57 years.
When Ruth was but five years old her mother died of tuberculosis, leaving a young child in the care a single parent. Her father decided the best thing to do was find a housekeeper who could help care for his young daughter. And in 1922 he did just that. He found a widowed housekeeper who also had an only daughter. The girls were the same age. These two girls grew up as sisters, even graduating from high school together in 1933. Ruth's sister, if you will, Dorothy Benson, is here this afternoon. I'd like her to stand up and be recognized... Dorothy Benson.
After graduating from high school the sister's parted company. Ruth remained at home and took care of the house for her father. The relationship with her father became even closer in those years. They did EVERYTHING together, from going grocery shopping to changing the oil in his Model "T" Ford. To give you a little more insight on her father, at the time of his funeral in 1976, I had an opportunity to spend some time with one of his business partners; one of the five men who co-founded Ex-Cello. He told me a most interesting story I'd like to share with you this afternoon. It dealt with a trip made to Toledo, Ohio to look at a machine that could convert heavy paper into large envelopes. These envelopes were then sealed in wax to make them waterproof. The inexpensive envelopes could then be used to package aircraft parts and keep them dry at all times. Remember, there were no plastic bags at that time. They looked at that machine and then studied it closely. Then, one of the partners came up with an idea, completely different from the original idea of packaging aircraft parts.
If they could make a waterproof envelope, they could make a waterproof carton and if they could make a leak proof carton, why not package milk in it. At that time milk came only in glass bottles. So when they came back to Detroit they drew up the plans and made a machine that would produce a leak proof milk carton. They received a patent on it and later sold the manufacturing rights. Now, I can remember when I was a child, taking my fingernail and scraping the wax off the milk carton. And you may remember the milk carton used to have a flap in the center, near the top. When you raised that flap it exposed a hole from which the milk poured. But, you always slopped it down the front of the carton. They made two modifications in later years that brought about the milk carton as we know today. First, they went from a wax coating to a plastic coating to keep it leak proof and second they changed it to a... "side opening carton" which automatically provided a pouring spout. So, the next time you open a carton of milk I know you'll be thinking about this lady sitting right over here.
.
Please be seated.
Welcome to this 80 birthday celebration for Ruth Arlene Counts. My name is Keith Balon. The lady we're going to talk about this afternoon is my mother. At this time I'd like to introduce Ruth's daughter, and my sister, Ruth Ann Welko.
In the next few minutes we're going to review Ruth Counts from all sides, past, present and future.
This all began last year when Ruth Ann and I were talking on the telephone and decided we'd like to put this event together. The big question was, do we try and surprise mom or do we tell her what we're going to do. After much discussion we decided that mom would like to participate in the planning of this birthday party and that could be a lot of fun for her, so, we would tell her. At that point Ruth Ann's comment to me was, YOU tell her! So, I called on the telephone and told her I was planning to come up here for her birthday (I live in Tallahassee, Florida) and that Ruth Ann and I were planning a little party for her, at the Civic Center. After a long pause she said; Well my birthday isn't until next May, do we have to wait that long? At that point, I knew everything was going to work out just fine.
There are a lot of folks in this room that have known Ruth for a few years; some for many years. Myself, I've known her for 52 years. She happened to be there when I was born. Ruth Ann has known her for a long time too, but we won't say how long.
We thought it would be fun to take a moment and go back to the early days and maybe tell you something about Ruth that you didn't already know.
So, let's take a trip back in time.
Ruth is of German decent, with both her maternal and paternal grandparents coming from Germany to the United States around the year 1880. Both sets of grandparents settled in Buffalo, New York. Ruth's mother, Charlotte Hoffmann, was an only child. She was born in 1893. And Ruth's father, Charles Benker, was one of 9 children. He was born in 1892. And it came to be that Charles Benker and Charlotte Hoffmann were married in 1914 and shortly after, moved from Buffalo to Detroit. On May 14, 1915, Charlie and Charlotte Benker gave birth to their only child, a baby by the name of Ruth Arlene Benker. Now, about that same time, Ruth's father Charlie Benker and four his friends, went into business together and founded a small tool and dye company that designed and manufactured aircraft parts. Of course, the aviation industry was in its infancy at that time. The name of the company was called EX-CELLO Tool Company and was later changed to EX-CELLO Corporation. Now the name EX-CELLO, may mean something to you folks that have lived in the Wixom and Walled Lake area for some time. Back in the late fifties, EX-CELLO built a plant right over here on Ladd Road in Walled Lake. It was Ruth's father who was responsible for picking the sight and for construction of the plant. We'll talk a little more about Ruth's father in a minute.
Ruth was raised in Highland Park, a suburb or Detroit. She was born in 1915 and in 1919, her family moved into a house on Geneva Avenue. Ruth's father lived in that same house for 57 years.
When Ruth was but five years old her mother died of tuberculosis, leaving a young child in the care a single parent. Her father decided the best thing to do was find a housekeeper who could help care for his young daughter. And in 1922 he did just that. He found a widowed housekeeper who also had an only daughter. The girls were the same age. These two girls grew up as sisters, even graduating from high school together in 1933. Ruth's sister, if you will, Dorothy Benson, is here this afternoon. I'd like her to stand up and be recognized... Dorothy Benson.
After graduating from high school the sister's parted company. Ruth remained at home and took care of the house for her father. The relationship with her father became even closer in those years. They did EVERYTHING together, from going grocery shopping to changing the oil in his Model "T" Ford. To give you a little more insight on her father, at the time of his funeral in 1976, I had an opportunity to spend some time with one of his business partners; one of the five men who co-founded Ex-Cello. He told me a most interesting story I'd like to share with you this afternoon. It dealt with a trip made to Toledo, Ohio to look at a machine that could convert heavy paper into large envelopes. These envelopes were then sealed in wax to make them waterproof. The inexpensive envelopes could then be used to package aircraft parts and keep them dry at all times. Remember, there were no plastic bags at that time. They looked at that machine and then studied it closely. Then, one of the partners came up with an idea, completely different from the original idea of packaging aircraft parts.
If they could make a waterproof envelope, they could make a waterproof carton and if they could make a leak proof carton, why not package milk in it. At that time milk came only in glass bottles. So when they came back to Detroit they drew up the plans and made a machine that would produce a leak proof milk carton. They received a patent on it and later sold the manufacturing rights. Now, I can remember when I was a child, taking my fingernail and scraping the wax off the milk carton. And you may remember the milk carton used to have a flap in the center, near the top. When you raised that flap it exposed a hole from which the milk poured. But, you always slopped it down the front of the carton. They made two modifications in later years that brought about the milk carton as we know today. First, they went from a wax coating to a plastic coating to keep it leak proof and second they changed it to a... "side opening carton" which automatically provided a pouring spout. So, the next time you open a carton of milk I know you'll be thinking about this lady sitting right over here.
.
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