COMMUNITY
CHRISTMAS SPIRIT AND INNOVATION SHINES BRIGHT AT GENERAL FILMS
Covington, OH— Sunday, November 29, 2020
The General Films Christmas party is typically a time for our associates to gather and celebrate the holidays with a festive dinner. Due to the coronavirus, this annual tradition was reformatted to ensure everyone could stay safe, healthy, and socially distanced. The new format was initially planned as an outdoor gathering, like an old-fashioned Christmas Market, but the pandemic issues continued...which required us to change the event once again. This time, we created a Drive-thru experience, with several individual tents arranged around the GF facility for our associates and their families to enjoy. The Drive-thru included many stops with gift items, kettle corn, hot cocoa, a food truck, Santa, holiday lights, and more. GF employees, including the senior leadership team and the Sunshine Committee, staffed each tent. The event provided a great opportunity to individually thank our associates for their dedication to GF and express appreciation for their outstanding effort during such a challenging year. Although it was a different approach, we were pleased to continue our annual GF Christmas tradition - and It was a wonderful day to celebrate and enjoy the holiday season!
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COVINGTON SCHOOL BOARD OF EDUCATION RECOGNIZES GENERAL FILMS FOR LEGACY OF COMMUNITY SUPPORT
Covington, OH—October 9, 2020
General Films was awarded the Ohio School Board Association’s Business Honor Roll at the September 16, 2020, Covington Exempted Village Schools Board of Education meeting.
For 75 years, General Films has been honored to partner with our community on education initiatives. The OSBA Business Honor Roll program recognizes just that—areas where businesses and schools are able to collaborate, ensuring that schools receive the support and real-world experience they need today while businesses are able to share the workforce skills students needs for tomorrow.
General Films Founder Roy J. Weikert began his education in a single-room schoolhouse before eventually graduating from Covington High School. Following graduation, Roy attended Columbia University in New York City and completed his Bachelor of Science Degree at The Ohio State University in Columbus.
Roy’s passion for learning was reflected not only in his formal education but also in his profession. A lifelong learner, it was Roy’s insatiable curiosity and inventiveness that led to General Films. Prior to WWII, Roy invented a manufacturing process that pioneered the Company’s first product; a plastic protector for men’s hats.
Following service in the war—and along with his brother, Wayne—Roy’s curiosity and energy turned to creating new products and building a manufacturing business. It was then that General Films was officially founded, making Roy an industry icon and flexible film leader.
Today, General Films’ commitment to education and invention continues. Through the RJW Foundation, General Films presented Covington EVS with a gift that funded computers, plus a business education initiative. Later donations supported renovations and improvements to the school’s theatre.
It was Roy’s nephew and current General Films CEO Tim Weikert who accepted the award. “Covington continues to be the setting for our company and family’s story,” said Tim Weikert. “We are honored to help support a new generation of learners and innovators, who we hope will look to Roy and General Films as their inspiration.”
AT HOME IN OUR COMMUNITY
Since 1947, we have been a fixture in our community and active supporters of local schools, charities, and civic outreach organizations. From employee food and clothing drives that help the less fortunate to sponsoring youth sports and scholarship programs, we take our responsibility to our community seriously, and so do our employees. Many members of our General Films family freely devote their time and energy outside of work to help improve the quality of life for others.
On a national scale, the company has made large equipment donations to support several educational institutions, including Food Sciences in the College of Agriculture at Purdue University and the dairy programs at Penn State University and Cornell University. Our founder, Roy J. Weikert, also made significant donations in his lifetime and through his estate to the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army.
Several local and regional organizations have also been beneficiaries of Roy’s generosity. General Films recently hosted an event for community leaders to share information about the company and distribute additional philanthropic gifts to several local groups. Some organizations that received funds from Roy’s estate include the Village of Covington, Covington Exempted Village Schools, Covington Fire & Rescue, Covington-Newberry Historical Society, Covington Church of the Brethren, and the Brethren Retirement Community in Greenville. The event provided a wonderful opportunity to reflect on Roy’s life, recognize the impact that he had on General Films and the local community, and celebrate more than $500,000 of donations over the past two years