Andy & wife Holly at the 2022 MI History Conference

In 1999, with input from all team members, Team 1 Plastics adopted their Championship Dream.  This written agreement, similar to a mission statement, entails “how the company lives and breathes as they do business” and includes four core values: Customer Service Excellence, Team Member Success, Freedom to Succeed, and Positive Community Member.

Team 1 holds true to being a Positive Community Member by putting their donations and volunteer efforts toward organizations and events within the local communities of Jackson and Calhoun counties.  Some of those donations and volunteer efforts include Public Schools, Junior Achievement, Starr Commonwealth, Albion Chamber of Commerce, South Michigan Food Bank, Albion Community Foundation, and local community events.

This week, Team 1 is proud to highlight the extensive volunteer efforts of one of their Team Members, Maintenance Manager Andy Zblewski.  Most recently, Andy contributed to the planning and served as a Moderator for the Historical Society of Michigan’s 2022 Michigan History Conference, held on the campus of Albion College.  If anyone at Team 1 Plastics embodies the core value of being a Positive Community Member, it is Andy.

A HISTORY OF ALTRUISM

According to merriam-webster.com the term altruism is defined as an “unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others.”  Having joined the Team 1 Plastics family in 2010, the company has been proud to call Andy Zblewski one of their own, though his volunteer efforts for the City of Albion began long before joining Team 1.  Andy served eleven years on the Albion District Library Board and twelve years on the Albion City Council.  Most impressively, for the past 23 years, Andy has served on the Albion Historical Society Board: holding numerous titles and serving on many committees, as seen listed below.

President – 10 non-consecutive years
(Currently) Vice President – 6 non-consecutive years
Secretary – 2 years
Archives Committee Member
Museum Committee Member
Fundraising Committee Member
Programs Committee Member

When examining the history of Andy’s volunteer work, particularly for the City of Albion, it is easy to see that he is a true altruist.  “I enjoy giving back wherever I can.  I have two children that require much of my time, so I have had to cut back a lot, but I have also found ways to make my volunteering into a family event.  It has become a great way to spend time with my family while still doing what I love.  It is very fulfilling to know that what I do matters and makes a difference.”

A BUSY 2022

As you can imagine, all this volunteer work must make for a busy schedule throughout the year: with 2022 being no exception.  This year alone, Andy has been involved with events for the Albion Historical Society and has stayed active with other organizations as well.  Those events and organizations include:

Annual Gardner House Golf Outing Fundraiser
Walk the Beat Music Festival
Festival of the Forks
Michigan History Conference
Docent for Gardner House Museum Tours
Speaker at Albion Rotary Club
2022 Riverside Cemetery Tour – to be held this Sunday, October 9
Albion Economic Development Corporation Board Member
Albion Maintenance Coalition organizer
Albion Leadership Academy
Sunday school teacher for 7^th and 8^th graders
Grand Knight of Albion Knights of Columbus

In addition to these community volunteer opportunities, Andy stays heavily involved in the lives of his twin daughters. Supporting his daughters’ activities comes in the form of everything from taking tickets at their school plays to working the concession stands for their sporting events.  When asked what he enjoys most about all these events and volunteer efforts, Andy gladly shared, “I enjoy the actual day of the Golf Outing Fundraiser.  The work up to it can be stressful, but the actual day of watching everyone having fun and raising money for the museum is the best.  I enjoy anything that involves history, especially history of the Great Lakes area, and I enjoy spending time with my family.”

2022 MICHIGAN HISTORY CONFERENCE

Historical Society of Michigan Events Manager Erika McDowell

For the past 148 years, the Historical Society of Michigan has held an annual meeting and Michigan History Conference.  This annual event is held at a different location throughout the state each year, never hosted at the same city within a ten-year period.  Historical Society of Michigan Events Manager Erika McDowell shared, “The Michigan History Conference serves as a major event of outreach and visibility for the Historical Society of Michigan.  There is also an influx of revenue for the host city, bringing traffic to local businesses.”

This year, the Michigan History Conference was hosted by the City of Albion and brought in approximately 250 visitors, exhibitors, and sponsors to the campus of Albion College.  Erika explained, “Albion was chosen before the pandemic, then everything with COVID hit and it had to be postponed.  We have a recent Albion alum on our staff, so she helped to push for this location.  It is also nice to have a college as a hosting institution because of the classroom sizes, the AV equipment, and oftentimes a college becomes a focal point of the community.  It is nice to partner with colleges because they are typically excited to host a history event; knowing how it impacts their region.  This year’s event has a particular focus on Albion history and the broader Calhoun County region.”

PARTNERING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN

Albion Historical Society’s President Celeste Connamacher & Vice President Andy Zblewski

Holding true to their value of being a Positive Community Member, Team 1 Plastics sponsored the conference exhibitor’s table for the Albion Historical Society.  The Albion Historical Society played a vital role in making the Michigan History Conference happen for the City of Albion.  Several members, including Andy Zblewski, sat on a planning committee to talk about content and which speakers might be a good fit.  Erika shared, “Andy has worked very closely with the Historical Society of Michigan, the Albion Historical Society, and the walking tour through Riverside Cemetery for the conference.”  In addition to planning the event, Andy and current Albion Historical Society President Celeste Connamacher served as Moderators for some of the breakout sessions.  Moderator responsibilities included ensuring the sessions started and ended on time, introducing the speaker, and ending the session with questions for the speaker.

WANT TO SEE OR LEARN MORE?

To learn more about the 2022 Michigan History Conference, click on the Conference Content Booklet below.  You can also take a peek at the picture slideshow below from Day 2 of the 2022 Michigan History Conference