Steelworkers gather for annual picnic

WEIRTON -- Old memories, old friends and good buddies.

That was what was shared on Saturday at the Weirton Steel 25-Year Club’s 73rd annual picnic at the Serbian Picnic Grounds.

Ron Baker, president of the club, said he first came to the picnic in 1986. Baker, who still works at ArcelorMittal as a millwright in the tin mill, has 47 years in at the plant.

“I enjoy going to work. Not too many people can say that,” he said.

Baker said he heard a lot about the annual picnic from fellow and retired workers.

“I felt like a young employee again. It was something I wanted to be a part of. I got involved and got voted as president,” he said.

Baker said there were as many as 3,000 workers attending the 25-Year Club picnic in the old days. Today, about 400 come.

“Back then, there was a lot more people -- guys you hadn’t seen in a long time. It is a shame a lot of the guys have passed away,” he said.

The club has opened the picnic up to any employee.

“The younger guys can come here now. We adopted a lot of the younger people to keep it going. It is more of a picnic for the mill,” he said.

Baker said the weather was good, with the expectation of a good turnout.

“It is just a good time for everyone. A lot of guys gave their lives to the mill. Some lost their lives at the mill. These guys are veterans of the mill. They are legends. They served their time. A lot are 85- to 90-years old. They come here for a reunion. They look forward to it. The sad part is the ones that are missing it,” Baker said.

Ernest Nicholas of Weirton is the former president of the club. Now at age 89, Nicholas spent 45 years in the mill, ending as a general foreman. He started at the mill in 1947, taking a few years off to serve in the Korean War from 1950 to 1951.

“Weirton Steel was good to people. They had 13,000 to 14,000 people working there from the surrounding Tri-State Area.

“Old memories, old friends and good buddies. It is good the older guys get together,” he said.

Delbert Stewart of Wellsburg worked at the mill as an electrician before retiring. He said it was good seeing old friends, including his foreman, Terry Zamana of Toronto.

Zamana said he worked at the mill for 44 years as an electrician in the tin mill.

“We fought a lot because I had to tell him what to do. I really liked it though. They paid us well and treated us well. I miss most seeing the guys. When we retired, we didn’t stick together. That’s what is good about this -- seeing old friends,” he said.

Vernon Smith worked at the mill for 33 years as a mason and bricklayer and at the coke plant before it closed.

“It was a job. It paid well and you could make a living,” he said.

He has been a member of the 25-Year Club since 1995, but it was only his second time at the picnic.

“I thought it was over and done with,” he said.

“It is good to see a lot of my old workmates.”