Matt Thompson

Hi Matt, to kick things off, can you tell us when you started with Walsworth?

I’ve been here 17 years now. Coming in, I had construction as my background, and I came in as a cutter/operator. We did quite a bit more cutting back then since we were more sheet-fed at the time.

Everything seemed pretty interesting, and I started asking questions and learning more. I learned the equipment and moved my way up to a foreman, or what we now call a lead. I learned that role and did it for quite a while.

I’m a manager now and have been a bindery manager for two years.

Can you talk a little about your career in construction before you came to Walsworth?

Yeah, I was doing metal roofing – roofing, gutters, soffit, fascia. I did that for several years.

What ended up bringing me here initially was my youngest daughter. We found out she had some health concerns, and I needed a good job with health insurance. I looked around and found Ovid Bell, which later became Walsworth – Fulton.

And now you’ve been here for 17 years. What is it about the company, or maybe the printing industry, that has appealed to you enough to stay?

To me it’s always been the internal drive to get better.

With this job, there’s always something to learn, and I enjoy that. Every day has new opportunities and I’m learning something new. We don’t have a lot of equipment, but the equipment we do have, I’ve tried to learn it all.

Whether we’re testing a new job on a piece of equipment or something needs to be updated, there are opportunities to learn something new all the time. That’s kept me interested.

What’s a typical day like for you guys in the bindery?

I try to recognize each person first thing, and then we have our production meeting with Kevin (plant manager Kevin Werdehausen). I’ll usually then go over any supplies or parts that need to be ordered and take care of that. Once this has been taken care of, I start making parts on the 3D Printer, whether it’s scanning the old part or building it in a CAD program. While the parts are being made, I usually walk the floor to see if people need help and how things are going out there.

Can you tell us a little bit about the importance of the relationship between the company and the city of Fulton?

We are a smaller community in Fulton. Ovid Bell, and now Walsworth, have been running strong here for over 100 years. The company is a big part of the community, a big part of who Fulton is.

As a matter of fact, we cleaned out our old vault last week. We went and found old records and land deeds from 1942. There was quite a bit of stuff in there. Being part of a company that’s so important to our community is a privilege, and I believe it’s something to be proud of.

When you pitch to prospective employees, or someone who is going to work on the floor, what makes Walsworth an appealing place to work or what makes printing an appealing career, how does the pitch go?

That’s something I talk about every time I do a walk-through with an interviewee. I kind of give them my backstory and tell them I knew nothing about this facility when I started.

I tell them if you have the right mentality and the willingness to learn, you can grow exponentially in this company. You can move up very quickly and that’s a huge thing. You can make a very successful career here.

What do you view as some of the keys that will continue to allow Walsworth to continue to grow and be successful in the future?

I think a lot of it is our willingness to grow. Right now, the automation that we’re putting in allows us to step our game up and compete. We’re also talking about adding digital, and that would be a nice addition to our platform.

One of the bigger projects I’ve taken on recently this year has been 3D printing. Up until now, this was something we had never really done. So far this year, we have around $15,000 in cost savings just from printing our own parts. It also allows us to make spare parts ahead of time instead of overnighting them from the factory.

But it didn’t start as a cost-savings program, did it?

No, we started printing them because we were having problems getting parts. Either they weren’t available, or it was going to take too long to receive them.

What are some of the things you’ve been able to make so far?

We made some press parts, cams, gears and pins. It’s been interesting learning how to make these items, as well as peace of mind knowing we have parts on hand that we didn’t before.

Are you originally from the Fulton area?

No, I’m from Hermann, Missouri. I moved to Fulton area while I was in high school.

Can you tell us about your family?

I’ve been married to my lovely wife and my best friend Crystal for 18 years. My oldest daughter Khayla is 25. My son Jaden is 22, and my youngest daughter Malaysha is 17.

And it looks like there might be a baby in the mix?

Yes, my son has gifted us with a grandchild. He’s a little chunk. We love that little boy.

Let’s talk about your wife. She also works at Fulton, right?

She does, Crystal has been here around 17 years. I started a little bit before she did. She works in accounting and really enjoys her job and the people she works with.

Are all the kids and the grand baby in the area?

Yes, my oldest daughter just graduated from Mizzou with her doctorate in occupational therapy. She is currently working for Columbia Public Schools, working with kids and really enjoying that. She’s got a big heart, and we look forward to seeing what she will do moving forward.

Jaden, my boy, is currently working at Hitachi. Jaden enjoys hunting, fishing, riding ATVS.  He has also blessed us with our first grandchild, Tayden, and we enjoy spending a lot of time with him.

And then my youngest Malaysha, is graduating from high school this year. She’s received a golf scholarship and will be playing collegiate golf as well as studying to become a nurse. She had several offers, but surprisingly enough, she wants to stay close to home and is going to William Woods.

We spend a lot of our time in the fall watching Malaysha play golf. Usually, we’ll save all of our vacation time and take it during the golf season. She has signing day on Nov. 13, so she’s pretty pumped about that, as are we.

Are you or your wife golfers? How did she get into the sport?

I’m not gonna say I golf. I like going, but I’m not very good. I more so enjoy watching her play. She’s only been playing for three years, and she is pretty good. We are looking forward to seeing what she is able to do in college.  It’s just amazing to see what she’s capable of and watch her play.

Any other hobbies?

It’s mainly spending time with family. I like watching sports and also enjoy woodworking. I like building things from furniture, décor items, different things like that. It’s kind of a stress reliever.

I also really enjoy smoking meat. I grew up doing that as a hobby with my uncle and grandparents who competed at the American Royal there in Kansas City.

Have you done competition BBQ yourself?

No, I’ve never done competitions myself, but I’ve done catering. I’ve catered for churches, birthday parties, stuff like that. I think the biggest group I did was for 160 people and smoked 12 butts for it.

It’s relaxing, sitting out there for 10-12 hours.

What’s a fun or interesting fact about you that most people wouldn’t know?

I am scared of ladybugs.

If you had a personalized coffee mug, what would it say?

Winners are not people who never fail; they’re people who never quit.

Do you guys have a favorite family vacation spot?

My wife and I never took vacations as kids. Our parents weren’t able to.

But about five years ago, we made the jump and started taking our kids on vacation. Our first one was probably the most memorable because it was the first. We went to Fort Walton Beach, Florida, and the kids loved it, we all loved it. Ever since then we’ve tried to take regular trips with the family, mainly been in the Gulf area.

If it was up to my wife, we would live down in the gulf. She loves it down there.

You have a favorite movie or TV show to watch?

My favorite show would probably be NCIS. My daughter and I watch it together.

My favorite movie is “I Can Only Imagine”.

You mentioned smoking meat and BBQ earlier. Do you have a favorite meal?

Yeah. I’m always down for some good brisket, but my favorite meal is probably just a good steak and potatoes, I’m simple like that.

As you reflect back on 17 years with the company, do you have a favorite memory or a particular project or accomplishment that you’re most proud of?

I would say the thing that stands out was being recognized as employee of the year.

This was back when I was an operator, and the recognition wasn’t so much for me as much as it was for the crew I had. And during that recognition, John Bell asked me to come up, and shook my hand. I recognized the crew because without a good crew, I wouldn’t have been able to do what I did. That’s what I try to drill into our team all the time. You can be the best operator out there, but without a good crew behind you, you’re going to fail. I ask these guys all the time to work as a team.