Veteran ISSI employee has seen a lot of change

Carol Schenk has had a front-row seat to observe her employer’s growth and change over the past 49 years. As of this week, her paycheck will reflect a different logo, though she will proudly continue to work for a company which changed its name from International Sensor Systems Inc. to Aurora Boardworks.
“I was working at the cafe downtown in the Fidelity Building and Cliff would come in for lunch,” Schenk recalled. “He told me to come out and apply so that’s how I came out here. I think they opened in November and I started in June.”
Schenk said she was the second person hired by founder Williams, noting that much has changed during her nearly 49-year tenure.
“You just have to learn to adapt to everybody’s way of doing things,” she said with a smile. “Sometimes you don’t agree, but it’s just one of those learning curve things. As long as we can all work together and get the product out the door, that’s the main thing.”
Schenk said she has filled various roles over the years, including supervisory work. She is now focused on more detailed work, which she says is harder to train and takes longer to learn.
“I’m working now on a lot of the finer things that we do, which are harder for people to do,” she explained. “I do a lot of my work under the microscope and that’s harder to learn. To me it’s very interesting  because it’s always challenging. We’re always getting something new in here.”
Asked if she knows where the results of her labor end up, Schenk admitted that the answer it typically not.
“I kind of know basically where it goes to, but as far as what it really looks like in the end I have no idea,” she said with a laugh.
Schenk said she has mixed emotions about the name change, but has already accepted it, realizing that her role will remain much the same.
“I was trying to make it to 50 years and I’m still working on that,” she said. “I don’t have too much further to go. I can understand the change and it’s okay. I just like working here, and I like the work.”