Glick - Born to Build

1997 and 2006 by Gene B. Glick

All rights reserved.
e-book copyright 2014 Marianne Glick
Licensed to Hawthorne Publishing

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 97-74000
ISBN 0-9787167-2-8

Published in the United States by

Hawthorne Publishing
15601 Oak Road
Carmel, Indiana 46033
317-867-5183

Interior and text design by Sheila G. Samson of WordCrafter, Inc.,
Carmel, Indiana

This book is dedicated to my loving wife and wonderfulpartner of fifty-plus years, Marilyn Koffman Glick, in celebration of ourgolden wedding anniversary as well as the fiftieth anniversary of the foundingof the Gene B. Glick Company.

Without Marilyn's vision, wise counsel, tremendouswork, and unfailing support in every aspect of life it could not have beenwritten. I quote the words of poet Roy Croft, which I used to mark ourtwentieth wedding anniversary and are as true to me today as they were then:

I love you because you
Are helping me to make
Of the lumber of my life
Not a tavern
But a temple: Out of the works
Of my every day.
Not a reproach
But a song
I love you
Because you have done
More than any creed
Could have done
To make me good
And more than any fate Could have done
To make me happy.

It is a salute, too, to our four daughters, Marianne, Arlene, Alice, and Lynda, theirhusbands, and their children, whose encompassing love warms us every day.

And this dedication extends toour loyal colleagues; as has been written, "No man is an island ...," which thought is as true in every business enterprise as it is inpoetry. We acknowledge and honor this debt with tremendous gratitude.

CONTENTS

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• 10
• 11

PREFACE

THE IRASCIBLE Samuel Johnson observed that "no man but a blockhead ever wrote except for money." Since it's immediately obvious that this book will never make The New York Times nonfiction bestseller list, Johnson's view is not the underlying inspiration for it.

So why did I write it? For several reasons, all of which I thought were valid, with the reader either establishing or rejecting that belief. It will be your call.

One of my reasons for writing this is that it would inform, perhaps inspire, establish some history, and, I hope, entertain with some humor. I didn't want to write the kind of book that once you put it down, you couldn't bear to pick it up again!

On a personal level, it was to tell our children and their children and their children's children more about what we did and how we did it, and a bit more about the times in which we lived. I have always wished I knew more about the lives of my ancestors.

In the business world we hope that laying out what amounts to a case history of what can be accomplished, starting from scratch, will not only be of interest to someone with an entrepreneurial bent, but might be an inspiration to anyone wishing to make the attempt to follow a dream. And from a purely academic point of view, I hope this book will be an explanation to the student of how an idea grew to become a major force in an entire industry.

Among other merits, we know it will inform our colleagues, present and future, of the basic tenet on which the organization was built and how it prospered: that dedicated service by people of excellence would be recognized in the marketplace. It should become obvious that teamwork of those sharing a mission is the basis of success of an organization formed of people with vision and integrity. The suggestion has been made to me many times through the years to write this book, but every time the thought crossed my mind, with great self-control I would lie down until the thought passed.

But several years ago, with the fiftieth anniversary of the company approaching, I understood what value the history would have, and I faced up to the task, which has been monumental. It has taken far more time than anticipated, more work than we thought possible, and has admittedly been a source of exasperation at times.

So the question arises: would you start the effort again? And the answer is a resounding "Yes"! Memories were stirred, factors of success were revealed, and the underlying value of the project was very much reinforced.

Have I achieved these goals in this volume? I must leave that judgment with you, the reader, having done the best I could, but I hope that you will find at least some parts of our goals to be of interest as you browse through these pages.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Frank Basile first proposed writing our company history as early as 1987, and again in 1992. As I told Frank just a few months prior to the publication of this book, I was glad he persevered until I finally agreed to do it, but I was not certain I'd be pleased with the result.

Besides Frank, there obviously are many people to thank, without whose work the book would not have been possible, and their contributions must be gratefully acknowledged.

I want to thank Bill Beck for the countless hours he spent interviewing me and others. He asked the right questions to elicit the most appropriate and interesting information. And I think he kept this dictum in mind very well: "If you live long enough, the venerabilityfactor creeps inyou get credit for things you never did, and praise for virtues you never had."

The people listed on page 261 all shared their own unique insight, and I am most grateful for their contributions.

I appreciated the review of the manuscript and the comments provided by The Indianapolis Star book reviewer, Rich Gotshall, and Jane Lyle of the Indiana University Press.

Thanks also to Nancy Gaubatz, Frank Basile's secretary, who transcribed every word of the thousand-plus pages of interviews. Tom Blandford did a fine job in the tedious task of compiling names and addresses for distribution of this book.

Brenda Coons coordinated the photographic work at our various projects and worked with the photographer, Harold Miller, and the cover designer, Dick Listenberger. My thanks also to these two gentlemen for their fine professional work.

Nancy Baxter of Guild Press of Indiana did extensive editing of my words to make them more readable, and she also coordinated all the elements of the publication process. Despite my efforts to delay, and perhaps even derail this project, Nancy continued to follow up to ensure that we stayed on track. A special thanks goes to our company associates, suppliers, and contractors who through the years have made our success possible. Their skills, knowledge, hard work, and loyalty carried us through these last fifty years and I am deeply indebted to all of them. Many have become lifelong friends. Finally, the person to whom I owe the most, in both my personal and professional life, is my loving wife, Marilyn. As I indicated in the dedication, she has been my closest friend, confidant, and partner during these last five decades, and without her, this work could not have been written.

Chapter1
Beginnings

The child is the father of the man.

William Wordsworth

I SUPPOSE I'VE ALWAYS been interested in the way families shape people. Howdo people get the way they are? I think about that from time to time. But therewere two reasons I grew up being aware of my roots. The first reason is thattwo grandparents lived right in our home when I was a childand you couldn'tmiss the connection with family history.

We lived at 36th and Salema street that runs between Meridian and Illinois only between 34th and 38th in that part of Indianapolis' Northside. After they were married in 1910, my parents had moved into a home built by my mother's parents. At the time Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Glick came home as newlyweds to Salem Street, there was farmland across the street, with cows grazing in a field on the north side of 36th. I was born there in 1921; my brother Arthur came two years later.