Magnolia Plastics Inc. recently announced the death of its founder, Don C. Wells, on Sept. 11, 2004. Wells established Magnolia Plastics in 1957 after a distinguished career with Monsanto Chemical Co. and Shell Chemical Co., and was considered one of a handful of pioneers in epoxy chemistry. Though well past retirement age and confined to a wheelchair for the past 18 months, Wells continued to work in his office at Magnolia Plastics two to three times a week. Additionally, he served as Chairman of the Board and presided over the company's annual Board of Directors meetings. Wells' son, Richard, officially became president of Magnolia Plastics in Feb. 2003 after having served as its sales manager and Chief Information Officer; Richard has been primarily responsible for the daily operations of the company for the past three years. Prior to joining Magnolia in 2001, Richard was president of International Financial Data Systems, Inc. (IFDS), a financial- and tax-planning software company he formed in 1977. Richard was also employed by Magnolia intermittently from 1957 until he left for college and the military in 1965, and has performed every position within Magnolia with the exception of laboratory work. "My father was a kind, brilliant and accomplished man throughout his life and we will miss him," Richard Wells said. "Although he was less involved in the day-to-day operations of the company in the past few years, he always enjoyed coming to work, interacting with his employees and customers...and watching his company continue to grow and prosper."

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