Former employees of shuttered Woodstock Brown Printing facility share stories

WOODSTOCK – "What do I do now?" That's what Kirk Achenbach of Poplar Grove asked himself in June after hearing that Brown Printing facility, 11595 McConnell Road, was closing.

One of some 550 people who lost their jobs, Achenbach worked the night shift and didn't hear the announcement firsthand. The news, instead, came through Facebook.

"I started texting people right away, asking 'Is it true. Is it true?' " he said. "Then you get scared and start thinking, what do I do now?"

Weeks later, Achenbach sat at the Woodstock Starbucks thinking back 34 years to when he first started at Graftek Press Inc., which was acquired by Brown Printing in 1997.

"We did a tour of the facility through a high school work program," Achenbach recalled. "I thought it looked pretty neat so I applied when I graduated and got a job right away. I was 18."

The announcement of the closure came after Wisconsin-based Quad/Graphics acquired Brown Printing Company in May for $100 million.

Given his lengthy tenure, Achenbach's world was shaken by the news.

"It came as a shock," he said. "After we got bought by Quad/Graphics we didn't know if it would be good or bad. We kind of talked ourselves out of the possibility that they were going to close, so we were all surprised when we heard."

The initial shock was shared with another former employee, Arron Bullock of unincorporated Crystal Lake. Bullock, who worked on the management level, said his immediate concern was the well-being of his employees.

"As a manager of 15 people, the thing I'm concerned with is making sure they have the tools and encouragement they need to face the change that they and their families will go through," Bullock said.

He said his own family has been a source or comfort throughout the ordeal. Upon hearing the news, his eight kids, ranging in age from 6 to 21, were quick to suggest exciting places to which they could move for their father's potential new job.

Each person was bound to handle the situation differently, Bullock added. He described post-announcement morale as similar to what might be observed after the death of a close friend.

Achenbach's description of the workplace was similar.

"The first day I went in afterwards, it was weird," Achenbach said. "You passed people and they just kind of looked at you and nodded. They had that look in their eyes; they were shocked."

Director of programming for the McHenry County Workforce Network Julie Courtney said the loss of a job is a grievous blow.

"It can be very devastating for people," Courtney said. "If you're familiar with the stages of grief, it's the same stages of someone who goes through job loss."

Sure enough, Achenbach said there was definitely anger at first, but waves of acceptance eventually washed over.

"Once the dust settled, and you kind of think about it, it's a business," he said, with a shrug. "It happens, and you just gotta get over it and move on."

The county workforce network has been trying to help people through that process, holding job fairs and presenting available services and options to those losing their jobs at the facility.

"We start that process before workers have their last day of work," Courtney said. "We support them the entire time they're looking for employment."

Achenbach said Quad/Graphics provided résumé consultation, and company spokeswoman Claire Ho said opportunities to work at other Quad/Graphics facilities were made available, too.

The facility is no longer producing, however, there are still a handful of administrative and production support employees working in the building, Ho wrote in an email.

"We ramped down operations over a series of weeks, with all production completed by Sept. 19," she wrote.

Achenbach's last day came before that, Sept. 12, but he was able to secure another position at an area printing company before his final day. The new job will allow him to stay near his 11-year-old daughter.

Bullock, who had not yet found another job as of early September, was looking at the situation with as open a mind as possible, saying the closure could be viewed as a career step.

"It's kind of like going back to when my wife and I were first married and just out of college," he said. "You know. Wondering where do you want to go, what do you want to do. It's pretty wide open."