Texas Gal-Chapter 52-Ashes, Ashes, All Fall Down By C.Sprite Posted with author permission by Stanman63! Synopsis:David is a young boy who is forcibly introduced to cross-dressing by his sisters, and their friends. The experience quickly changes his life, as he discovers what has been missing in his short life, for so long.

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"And we're just hearing about it now?" Mother asked. "It's eight o'clock here, so that means that it's about what, midnight in Dallas? Why did it take them half a day to notify us?"

"The message didn't get marked urgent and it was simply included with the daily traffic that they call with every night."

"Good grief. I could have been home already." Jumping up, I said, "I have to go. I'll catch a plane to Marseille or Nice. From there I can get an international flight to Maine, and then to Albany."

"Sit down and finish your breakfast," Grandma said calmly. "You'll get there a lot faster on our jet. You'll spend the better part of a day waiting for the proper connecting flights, and you'll travel a circuitous route of unnecessary miles to get where you're going."

"But you'll need that yourself for your trip back tomorrow."

"We'll cut short our holiday by one day and all go today."
"I don't want you to shorten your vacations."

"This is an emergency. We'll make up the missing day next year. Besides, this situation is of interest to me as well."

I knew better than to argue with Grandma so I sat back down, but my mind was in Vermont. And so apparently was my appetite because I only drank tea after reoccupying my chair.

I was preoccupied on the flight back to the U.S. but I was better off than Judy, who complained of a headache the entire way. I guess it was still more proof that she had consumed far more wine then she should have, being generally unaccustomed to drinking alcoholic beverages.

We stopped in Scotland to top off the fuel tanks before making the nighttime hop across the Atlantic, and arrived in Maine while the airport was still rousing itself from slumber. A sleepy customs team arrived to clear us through, and after filling the fuel tanks, we continued on to Rutland.

Earl was waiting with the limo when we arrived. It's a good thing that Grandma was thinking clearly because I never thought to call and have him drive up from Virginia to meet us.

Everybody wanted to come with me to the site, so we all piled into the limo for the ride. As we approached the guard booth at the entrance to the property, the guard on duty quickly raised the bar and came to rigid attention, his right arm in a formal salute.

"My word," Grandma said, as she sat up in her seat so she could glance out at the guard as we passed, "who does he think is in here, the President?"
"No, just 'a' president," I said. "They always do that when I arrive at a plant."

Grandma looked at me enigmatically and leaned back quietly into her seat. I didn't tell her that I had never ordered, or even asked, anyone to salute me because I was too busy scanning the area ahead of the car.

I suppose I was expecting to see a huge hole in the ground, but in fact the headquarters building was still standing where it had always stood. My heart leaped with excitement, thinking that maybe things weren't as bad as I'd feared. But as we came closer depression began to set in again.

As the limo pulled up in front of the building, we climbed out to get a better look. An acrid smell still hung in the air after two days. I supposed that it would linger until a good rain washed down the light ash and residue that swirled silently around us in the light breeze. There were two vehicles parked there. One had the logo of the local volunteer fire department printed on the side. Beneath that it said 'Chief.' The other was a utility style truck. On the door were printed the words 'Fire Investigation Team.'

The windows had all either been blown out or melted out and the building reminded me of the skulls used in pirate movies, the windowless openings looking like empty eye sockets. Around each were the blackened scars from flames that had licked the outside during the height of the blaze. The interior had been gutted, with walls and partitions mostly gone, except where the skeletal remains of charred framework still stood. Looking up through the windows on the second floor you could see sky, the meaning obvious. Much of the roof had burned off or collapsed onto the top floor. Either indicated that the building was indeed a total loss.

A commotion pulled my attention away and I saw a group of people emerge from one of two white construction office trailers like those you always see at large building projects. I hadn't even noticed them until then because my attention had been directly on the headquarters building. They were parked well off to the side of the area where the headquarters staff always parked. Leading the group approaching us was Bob Warren. Following him was my entire staff of vice-presidents. Even Jerry DeLuca, the new VP of the Northwest Region, was here. I hadn't expected to see him again until August, when we held the first of our new bi-monthly meetings in JC.

"Boss," Bob said, "I'm glad you're here but I'm sorry that you had to cut your vacation short."

"Just confirm what I heard. All our people are safe? There were no injuries?"

"A couple of firemen were treated on the site for smoke inhalation and immediately released. None of our employees were injured."

"Wonderful. What happened?"

By now all my officers were surrounding Grandma and myself. Mother, Judy, Mary, and Susan were standing slightly outside the ring, listening to the conversation.

"All we know for sure is that the fire started on third shift, between three and four a.m. on Saturday. The two third shifts on weekends here are used mainly for maintenance so there weren't too many people on site. A few people were taking a break in the cafeteria when someone smelled smoke. Beth, the only cafeteria worker on duty, immediately checked the kitchen and determined the smell wasn't coming from there, so she called in the alarm to the local volunteer fire department. Then everyone headed quickly for the tunnel to Plant One and pulled the fire doors closed behind them."

I knew that from nine p.m. at night until five a.m. in the morning, the cafeteria only served hot and cold beverages and snacks such as cake, pie, and doughnuts. In the winter, you could also get a cup or bowl of hot soup, but that was it until breakfast was available.

"There's no one on duty at the firehouse during the night so only one alarm goes out. When the pumper arrived, the first floor of the building was involved. The senior man immediately issued a new alarm call for every department within ten miles. He feared that the plants might catch fire. They hooked up to the hydrants and began pumping water into the building, but it was twenty-five minutes before the second truck arrived. By then the entire building was involved, but they at least got the fire somewhat under control and kept it from spreading to the plants. As other trucks began arriving, they knocked down the flames, and eventually managed to put the fire out. The response was great, for volunteer departments, and enough of the building is intact so that we've gotten some information on the cause. It was arson."

"ARSON?" I said loudly. "Are you sure?"

"The head of the fire investigation team from Rutland is pretty sure, enough to request that a special arson investigation team be sent down from the capital. They should be arriving shortly."

"Why do they suspect arson?"

"According to the lead man, the fire started in the basement room where we stored all the excess office furniture and equipment. The building wasn't that old, and all the wiring was redone to meet and exceed the current code when we installed the data center. Plus, the hottest spot was away from any electrical boxes or panels. The team from the capital should be able to determine if a fire accelerant was used, and what it was, or if the fire was a delayed action type, so that the arsonist had time to escape."

"I can't believe that one of our people would attempt to burn us down," I said.

"It could have been anybody. Although we have a guard on the front gate, and one who walks patrol, the property isn't that well protected from intrusion. The gate at the front just keeps vehicles out. Anybody who wants in can come through the woods at the back of the property. The chain link fence is porous enough in a dozen places for someone to slip under or through. And with so few people working third shift on weekends, the chances of being spotted are low if the person kept to the shadows. The upper two floors of the building are locked nights and weekends, but the basement has always been left unlocked since we built the cafeteria. You could either come in through the tunnel from Plant One or the rear stairway from the yard."

I took a deep breath and thought about what he said. The site wasn't a military complex after all and we had never attempted to make it so secure that a determined person couldn't slip through. A glance at my watch told me that it was a few minutes after ten a.m.

"We can't talk out here," I said. "Let's adjourn to the Holiday Inn. They have a couple of conference rooms. I'm sure one will be available."
Both rooms were available and I selected the one I felt would give us the greatest privacy. I ordered tea, coffee, and breakfast noshes for immediate consumption and told the manager that we would be ordering lunch later.

My management team took seats in similar arrangement to the seating positions they usually occupied at the conference table in my office; my former office I should say. There were several chairs unoccupied, so Grandma slipped into the open chair at the end of the table, directly opposite from where I sat. Mother, Auntie, Judy, Mary, and Susan chose to occupy chairs around the walls. I took time to introduce everyone before we began. Bob Warren, my Executive VP, was as always seated on my left and I could see him initially trying to decide where he should address his attention, to me or to Grandma.
I relieved him of the conflict by asking, "Do you have any arson suspects?"

"None yet."

"I suppose it could be almost anybody. We've made a lot of enemies during the past four years. There are the sales people that we've blacklisted from employment with the company because they conspired with South-Core to bring their company down; both the group who left just before I bought Piermont, and the group who did the same thing to Plymouth Paper at our Concord plant. There are the three clowns who formerly owned our Greenfield plant, and the Thorehills who expected to be paid their former salary for not working or not even showing up for work after we purchased Appalachian. There are the workers at the West Virginia plant who we blacklisted after they took over the plant we acquired from South-Core, and the sales people at Mo Paper that we had to fire for conspiring with South Core. And then there's Billy Biscum, whose fraud we uncovered in Houston. As far as I know, the Texas Rangers haven't found him yet."

"Let's not forget all the people we've had to fire over the years because they were caught drinking on the job, repeatedly picking fights, or who can't break a habit of indolence," Ron said.

"And the ones who resent the fact that we haven't opened the plant in their home towns," Gerard said. "Ian told me that he informed you about that situation when you stopped in JC."

"Most importantly, we can't ignore the possibility that it was the work of either South-Core or Alliance," Bob said.

"Or someone else with grudge that we don't know even about. Perhaps someone who wants to knock us down a peg because we're getting too big," I said. "Well, we can speculate all day, but until we get some solid proof, we're just spinning our wheels. The point is that someone out there thinks they've knocked us out of the game for a while. We're going to show them that they seriously underestimated us. What kind of shape are we in, Bob?"

"We swung into action before the fire was even out. I got the home telephone number of a guy that rents construction site office trailers in Rutland and convinced him to bring us two immediately. They were brought in yesterday morning and set up. It cost us a premium because he had to bring his guys in to work on a Sunday, but it was our first step towards reestablishing some normalcy.

"Then the telephone service guys moved in and hooked up a dozen phone lines for us. I have four receptionists handling the lines in trailer #2. All of our outside lines will roll over to one of the new, temporary lines until we're straightened out. The women are explaining that we had a fire and that the switchboard is down. They tell folks that messages will be passed on to the appropriate party as soon as possible. The sales order lines automatically roll over to the toll-free lines at Owosso, Asheville, and Jeff City when a line is busy or out-of-service so we're covered there for Monday morning. The other three sales offices can handle the load until we're back up here.

"I called our IBM sales rep and informed him that the mainframe we've been leasing has been destroyed. He said that in an emergency like this, the customer receives priority positioning in the delivery queue. A replacement system can be shipped within two weeks, where normal delivery is six months.
"Gerard, Ron, and Jerry arrived this morning. We were planning our next moves when you arrived."

"What have you come up with so far?" I asked.

"We believe that while the office trailers will be useful for getting us back on track right now, their long-term practicality is limited. We would need twenty-five or more to accommodate our entire headquarters staff, and space inside would be severely limited. What's more, once the weather turns cold, they're uncomfortable. These things are drafty and poorly insulated. In the winter the cold seeps up from below you, and when the wind blows they rock no matter how well you anchor them. We must have a building. Unfortunately, office buildings are in obvious short supply in our small town. The nearest available structures that can accommodate us will probably be found in Rutland or Glens Falls."

"If we have to be in Glens Falls," I said "it's too bad that the office in our cardboard plant is so small. It couldn't accommodate more than half a dozen additional people beyond the regular staff."

"It's too bad we needed the office space at Greenfield for the boxing operation," John Fahey, my VP of Engineering said.

"And the office space at Concord has been converted for use by the bag making operation," Tom Harris, my VP of Purchasing and Procurement said.

"All of our other plants are too far away to be considered as suitable locations for a headquarters operation," Bob said.

"Let's put the office location issue aside for a minute," I said. "Once we're situated, how long before we can restore basic services?"

"Once the computer is operational, we'll be ready to resume all accounting operations almost immediately," Bill Marshall, my VP of Finance said.

"Really? I thought it would take weeks, or even months, to assemble copies of the manifests so we can resume billing now that everything here was lost."

"Everything hasn't been lost, if the people in charge followed the procedures we established back when we only had one plant. At the end of each business day, all work documents in the Accounting Department are supposed to be placed into the fireproof vault. And when we set up the data processing department, we purchased a data safe. The IBM 2311 hard drives are supposed to be removed from the drive unit and placed into the safe every night when the computer is shut down, and at the end of each week, the files are all backed up onto magnetic tapes, which are also stored in the data safe. So as soon as the new computer is set up, we should be ready to go immediately; if, as I say, everyone followed established procedures, and if the data safe and fireproof vaults retained their integrity. If the hard drives were not put into the safe Friday, then we should at least have the backup tapes."

"The fire investigation team has told me," Bob said, "that the fireproof vault in the basement, as well as the small vault room in the Accounting Department appear intact. Also, the data safe in DP and the fireproof file cabinets in the file room outside your office appear secure."

"So then other than the building, we haven't really lost anything except furniture, furnishings, and office equipment?" I asked.

"Not exactly," Tom Harris said. "All my product catalogs are gone. The companies we buy from will be glad to send me new catalogs, but it will take time to do that. I also lost all the contracts I was working on. But my most serious loss is my rolodex. It contained all the names and phone numbers of my regular suppliers plus my industry contacts. It will probably take me a year to rebuild it."

"Although all our employee files are kept in the basement vault, recently submitted resumes are gone with no way to contact the individuals," Ben Phillips, my VP of Personnel and Employee Relations said. "And I also lost my rolodex. I feel cut off from the world without it."

"My marketing people submit all received orders to the Accounting Department throughout the day, so they should be safe in their fireproof vault," Matt Piermont, my VP of Marketing said. "Customer lists are produced by Data Processing, so as soon as the new computer is up, we can print out new ones. But all design work for new catalogs that hadn't yet been sent to Bloomington for printing is gone and will have to be redone from scratch. And we also lost our rolodexes; not only mine, but those of all my sales people here in Brandon."

"I lost literally tons of technical material, current work orders, and last week's reports from my engineers," John Fahey said, "plus my rolodex."

"Notwithstanding the loss of rolodexes, we would seem to be in better condition than I expected," I said. "We are seriously inconvenienced, and it will take time to fully recover, but it appears that our core business functions can be back up quickly."

"If we can find and prep an office building," Bob said. "We'll need desks, chairs, and a telephone system for starters."

"What about the computer system?" Gerard Deveraux, my VP for the Midwest Region asked.

"IBM will see to that once we have a space prepped," Bob said.

"No, I mean what about the prep? As I understand it, computers need special temperature and humidity control systems, plus electrical considerations."
"That will probably take the most time to complete," Bob said.

"How much time," I asked.

"Possibly two months."

"We can't be down for two months," Bill Marshall said. "If we don't send out invoices and bills, collections will dry up faster than spit in the Sahara at high noon."

"We could farm out the work until we're up," John said.

"No," I said. "I'm not going to create a situation where outsiders can get a look at our customer lists and sales information. We'll have to find an office building already set up for a computer."

"That's a pretty tall order, boss," Bob said. "Computers aren't that common, and most companies that have them, also have their own buildings. They don't have to rent. We'd probably have to go to a large urban area like Boston or New York City to find a rentable building with a computer room already in place."

"If we have to build a data center, let's at least do it in one of our own buildings," Ron Collins, my VP for the Southeast Region said. "There's enough office space at Franklin for the entire headquarters staff and a data center."

"When the plant was purchased," John said, "the carpeting in the office areas had to be trashed and areas were left wide open. So there are no partitions and the floors are bare concrete."

"Partitions can be erected quickly and easily enough," Gerard said, "and carpeting can be laid in a few days. The fact is that we shouldn't be looking to rent space when we already have four locations with enough room to accommodate both our headquarters staff and a data center. In Houston we have a million and quarter square feet still available for lease; that's enough to house twenty times the staff that we have here. Like Franklin, it's wide open warehouse type space, but other than the data center, we can prepare it quickly. If we want to avoid construction altogether, we have two office buildings ready to occupy, either of which will suffice. Asheville would be adequate, although a bit tight, but Jeff City is perfect. It has four times the office space of our Brandon headquarters building, is already set up with office partitioning, is fully furnished, fully sprinklered, and it has a brand new computer room in the basement just sitting there waiting for a computer to be brought in. The room has independent heating, cooling, and humidity controls, and a raised floor. Roy Blu intended to get a computer when he began building his new headquarters, but sales started to slump before the building was completed."

"There's just one problem," Ben Phillips said. "Jeff City is twelve hundred miles away."

"Two hundred, twelve hundred, what's the difference? Both are too far for commuting."

"Who said we were going to be two hundred miles away?" Ben asked.

"Bob said that we have to go to Boston or New York City to find space with a ready data center."

"I didn't mean that we should really consider either city," Bob said, "only that it would likely be the only way we'd find office space for our headquarters staff that included a prepared data center."

"Then let's consider the issue now," Gerard said. "We already own a perfectly acceptable building with a data center. Roy Blu referred to the building as his world headquarters, and he had it built to suit that need. A third of the basement is divided into fireproof vaults for long term storage needs, and another third is devoted to an expansive data center with large storage spaces for computer forms. There's a large fireproof vault for short term storage in the accounting section, and the building is ready for immediate occupancy. All we have to do is move in."

"We can't move our headquarters halfway across the country," Ben said.

"Why not?" Ron Collins asked. "Because you'd have to move your home?"

"Because everybody would have to move their home," Ben said. "Such a move would decimate our staff at a time when we need everyone's support to get ourselves out of this mess."

"No matter what action we take, we're going to lose staff," Jerry DeLuca, my new VP for the Northwest Region said. "Although some of our staff presently commute from homes in Rutland or Glens Falls, others won't contemplate commuting from here even if we only move the headquarters to one of those nearby small cities. A permanent move can be traumatic to a family. I know of what I speak since my family is in the process of preparing for our move to Portland. But the needs of the company are of paramount importance right now. We have to get reestablished as quickly as possible. Moving the headquarters to JC is the most logical resolution I've heard yet."

"Who said it was permanent?" Tom Harris asked. "It's only for two years, until we can rebuild here, isn't it?" He looked at me as he said the last part.

"There's no sense rebuilding the headquarters here and moving again once we've settled elsewhere for two years," Ron said. "We should just put up a small building here; one that can house a cafeteria and a small accounting staff like the ones we have at every paper plant."

Until this point I had just been listening, and watching the expressions on the faces of my management team members. Both Matt and John had grown up in this town, and I knew the idea of moving had hit them harder than the rest. I could see the agony in their eyes as they thought about moving away. I'm sure they had always thought that they'd live in Brandon for the rest of their lives, once I'd rescued the ailing company. They were at the top of the industry so there'd been no reason to contemplate leaving unless they became disenchanted with the company. I decided to continuing holding my comments and let my people thrash out the topic. The final decision was mine, and I could always make my opinions known when I announced it.

Several times I glanced at Grandma, and once we'd even locked eyes for a couple of seconds. There was a strange expression on her face as she listened quietly to the debate going on around the table and I wondered what she was thinking, but my attention was quickly pulled away when Bill Marshall made a strong point that was quickly rebutted by Gerard Deveraux.

The debate continued until after one o'clock, when I called a temporary cease-fire so the hotel staff could bring in a lunch. Then we continued. Every issue, every nuance, was discussed in depth. And when the debate was over, everyone knew how everyone else felt, except me. I had maintained my silence while the issue was thrashed and re-thrashed. I called a halt at five o'clock when nothing new had been brought up in half an hour and the same arguments were being repeated and then beaten to death.

"Thank you everyone," I said. "You've given me a lot to think about. Ben, I'd like you set up a meeting with our headquarters staff for two p.m. tomorrow. Headquarters staff only; no plant personnel or family members. See if you can get the auditorium at the school, or the church meeting hall. As a last resort we can use the ballroom here, but I'd rather not be somewhere where the attendees can toss down a few drinks before we start or after we're done. No matter what the decision, someone is going to be unhappy."

"Should we have the security people on duty at the meeting?" Bob asked.

"Yes, but just to insure that only headquarters staff get in. I'm sure that I won't need protection. Gerard, Ron, and Jerry, have you arranged for rooms here?"

"Ger and I have," Ron said.

"My family is still in Concord," Jerry said. "I'll stay there until it's time to return to Portland."

"Good. Then I'll see you all at the plant tomorrow. Bob, can you stay for a while longer?"

"Of course."

"Good. Okay, everyone. Goodnight."

I prepared a cup of tea while everyone filed out of the conference room. Grandma left with the others without having uttered a word since the initial introductions. After Bob prepared a cup of coffee, we took our seats.

"Things sound better than I feared when I heard the news of the fire," I said. "I'm glad you were here. Thank you for your efforts this weekend. You must be exhausted."

"I could use a good night's sleep. Now that our recovery effort is underway, I think I'll be able to doze off."

"You avoided coming out in favor of any of the options open to us. Tell me what you're feeling."

"It's difficult. I have mixed emotions. I know that the move to JC is the logical one, but I've grown very fond of Brandon. The people are great, the mountains are beautiful, and my time here has been wonderful. I hate the idea of moving my family again. The kids love it here and so does my wife."

"You could stay."

"What do you mean?"

"We'll still need a VP of the Northeast Region."

"Are you asking me to step down from Exec VP?"

"Never. I'm offering you the opportunity to remain here in a slightly lesser capacity. I would dearly hate to lose you as my Exec VP. You've done a terrific job and I know of no one that could fill your shoes as ably as you have. But if can't see yourself moving, there is this alternative."

"Then you've decided. You're moving the headquarters to JC."

"I'm leaning that way. I'm still considering the ramifications, not the least of which is staffing. If we move, we'll need a VP here. If you're in JC, you can't properly handle that role any longer with the same degree of hands-on involvement. I was already considering creating VP positions for the forms sub-division and the construction products sub-division, and if you move we'll have to create a separate position for the Northeast Region also. You'd have more than enough to do elsewhere. The business forms sub-division is fairly static, but the construction products area has lots of room for expansion. That and expansion of the paper business into international markets is where we'll grow in future years. Bill, Ben, and Tom will have to move if the headquarters is relocated. There are no positions for them here. Even if they chose to leave Piermont, they'll have to move to where a position is available, so they might as well move with us. I hate to move people against their will, but we must consider the good of the company at this difficult time. We have to consider that Matt and John may decide to remain in their home town. Matt has enough money from his sale of Piermont so that he doesn't have to work, and he has his romance to consider. I would hate to lose him, but he doesn't have to come with us. And John can get a job anywhere. He won't have the status and paycheck that he enjoys with Piermont, but he can remain nearer to his hometown."

"There's always the possibility that Matt can remain here," Bob said. "He's been running the sales offices in Owosso, Asheville, and JC from here. As long as he has telephone service, he can continue to operate without interruption. His people outside Brandon presently Telex their sales orders directly to Accounting, and there's no reason why Brandon can't do the same. We can messenger his updated client lists produced by DP each week, just as we've been doing for the satellite offices. He'd have to travel to JC for bi-weekly meetings, as Ron and Gerard do, but he otherwise pretty much operates autonomously. And he could continue to direct the efforts of his design staff right here also. There are a couple of empty stores in town large enough to accommodate his two groups. John could likewise remain here, except he wouldn't be available when you wanted to fly off to look at a plant on the spur of the moment. While Accounting must be near the data center, John doesn't have to be at headquarters. Personnel and Purchasing should naturally remain at the headquarters."

During the meeting we had discussed the move as an 'all or nothing' relocation, but Bob had valid points. Parts of our operation were already functioning in a distributed work configuration. His idea would lessen the loss of valuable people who couldn't move, or wouldn't move.
"I like it, and it eases my mind about moving our headquarters so far away. But what about you?"

"I think that I'd like to discuss it with my wife before I give you my decision. It concerns my entire family after all."

While Bob and I were talking, my family checked into the hotel, taking two suites in addition to my usual suite that the manager had reserved for me as soon as he heard that I had arrived at the hotel. They were all sitting in my suite when Bob had left for home.

"Darla Anne, that was a most interesting meeting," Grandma said. "Do you always conduct them on such an– informal level?"

I had attended executive meetings conducted by Grandma. She always maintained a degree of control like that you might expect to find in a courtroom."
"I prefer a looser format when we're brainstorming. I told them long ago that I abhor 'yes men' and that I'll tell them when I feel they've stepped over the line, so they understand that they can speak their mind freely in closed meetings. I promised them that if they stop when I warn them, I'd never hold anything against them that was said previously. They're all friends and I've never had to warn anybody to tread carefully."

"I've told you several times over the years that your style of acquiring properties is so very different from mine, but that I couldn't argue with your success, and now I see that your management style is likewise radically different. But again, I can't argue with your success. I've never conducted an executive meeting where I felt so much passion, nor where ideas were exchanged so freely."

"Today's topic is probably responsible for the passion, but I always endorse the free expression of ideas at our weekly meetings."

Grandma smiled and nodded. "During the meeting you said very little, but never for an instant did I feel that you weren't in complete command. Respect for you was apparent in the eyes of everyone at that table. I receive such respect also, but I don't think my managers love me as yours do you. Yours work hard not because they're afraid you'll fire them, but because they want your respect and they believe that making a valuable contribution to the corporate effort is the best way to earn it and keep it. Most managers would give their right arm to command such respect."

"I suppose that my style developed out of the knowledge that I was managing people who were already professionals in their field. I knew that I couldn't, and shouldn't, tell them how to do their jobs, so I just concentrated on defining the parameters and letting them do it. My frequent absences probably had something to with it also. They've become used to doing their jobs without me looking over their shoulders."

"Whatever the reason, I was even more impressed with you today than I usually am. What are you going to do to get the company moving forward again?"
I took a deep breath and released it. "I've decided to move our headquarters to our office building in Jefferson City, Missouri, which from this day forward shall be known as the World Headquarters of Piermont Paper. The location is just a couple of hundred miles from being dead in the center of the continental U.S. so the location is nearly ideal. I'm going to rent some space in local stores or office buildings to accommodate some of the people who can't or don't wish to move, until such time as a structure can be erected on our plant grounds. The new structure will be much smaller than the building that burned."
"Do you intend to move any part of the headquarters operations back here from JC when the building is ready for occupancy?"

"No. Brandon was the location of our headquarters simply because it was the launch point for the company. The new building we will build here will mainly house a cafeteria and the plant operations office. Extra space, for those people whom I feel I should accommodate for the foreseeable future because they are necessary for the continued good health of the company, will be included, but I'll make every effort to consolidate headquarters services in JC, as opportunities give me license."

Mother, Auntie, and my sisters always held their tongues when Grandma and I discussed the Paper division, but when Grandma asked no more questions, Mother asked, "Darla Anne, have they definitely determined that the fire was arson?"

"I haven't been informed of any new findings. I'm sure that if they determine that it was arson, the police will open an investigation. If we start seeing investigators, we'll know that it was arson." When no one posed any more questions I said, "It's dinnertime. Anyone else hungry?"

During a closed door meeting with my management team in one of the office trailers the following morning, I announced my decision. An apathetic reaction indicated that they had prepared themselves for what I was convinced now more than ever was the only logical course of action to resolve the problems that faced us. I also told them of the decision to rent whatever local space we could find for the people who would remain in Brandon. I didn't attempt to pin down either Matt or John yet. I would seek their answer to a possible move when I got an opportunity to speak to them in private. Bob didn't say if he had reached a decision, and I didn't press him. I knew that he would give a hundred and ten percent during the crisis, whether he decided to come to JC or remain in Brandon.

Ben had arranged for use of the meeting hall at the church in town, so I worked on my presentation while Bob went to meet the insurance adjuster who'd arrived to examine the destruction. The state's arson investigation team was working in the burned out building, but they allowed the adjuster everywhere except the one section that was the focus of their effort. Not that I could understand what he might be looking for. The building that had been there last week was now little more than a burnt shell of its former self.

My other managers were busy on the phones, returning calls that had accumulated since yesterday morning, while the receptionists called employees and informed them of the two o'clock meeting. Except for those assigned duties in the two office trailers, everyone had been sent home. They would receive their full pay, but were subject to recall at any time so they had to be available and near a phone during all regular work hours.

At two o'clock I walked into the meeting hall just ahead of my team. Church laymen had set up seats for the audience and two tables with chairs at the front of the room. Except for the receptionists manning the phones back at the trailers it looked as if the entire staff of a hundred twenty-eight employees were seated and waiting. The noisy room fell into a silence so complete that my heels echoed as hauntingly in the large hall as if it was empty.

"Good afternoon," I said as soon as we were seated. "This weekend our company received a serious blow; serious, but not fatal– or even crippling. Our first priority now is to effect recovery from the imposed, company-wide paralysis of our accounting operations. To do that we must regain our data processing capability. In discussion with knowledgeable individuals, I've learned that if we began an intensive effort today, we could not have a new headquarters building ready for occupancy on this site for two full years. It would take that long to raze the remains of our old building, have architectural plans completed and approved, secure the necessary permits for building, lay the foundation, construct the building, complete the interior, and furnish it. But a company with seventy-two plants and locations cannot simply suspend operations for two years.

"At some of our locations we have excess space where we could set up temporary office operations. But we have none within a reasonable commuting distance. We've discussed a number of options, but every viable plan involves establishing a headquarters away from Brandon. Since we must operate from elsewhere, I've decided that the office building in Jefferson City, Missouri that we gained when we acquired Mo Paper, offers us the best alternative. It's available for immediate occupancy and meets all of our prerequisites for space and equipment requirements."

I had started off strong because I didn't intend to soft-soap the situation. I knew what an impact my decision would on the lives of everyone in the hall and they had a right to the truth. I paused while a murmur of noise percolated through the crowd, and didn't resume until it was quiet again.

"This decision was difficult, and only made after many hours of discussion, during which we examined all the alternatives. My officers and I love Vermont and its people, but we've been left little choice in this matter. The move will not affect operations in the plant here. They will continue as before, so the economic health of the area should only be lightly impacted. Brandon will continue as the headquarters for the Northeast Region, but our office personnel needs here will naturally be minimal.

"My officers feel as I do that our people are our most valuable resource. Everyone from Brandon who wishes to transfer to Jefferson City will be welcome there. The company will pay all normal moving expenses, will assist you in finding a new home, and will assist you in selling your old home.
"Even if you do not wish to relocate permanently, we need temporary help getting our operations reestablished. The company will arrange for travel and lodging, including a meal allowance for anyone who doesn't have kitchen facilities, for anyone selected to join us in pursuit of that objective. If you wish to either relocate to JC, or temporarily assist our effort there, notify Mr. Phillips no later than ten a.m. Friday. At that time we will begin processing the paperwork for all others, except the people retained for the regional headquarters, so that they may apply for unemployment benefits."
"We're being fired?" I heard an astonished voice say but I couldn't identify the speaker.

"No!" I said emphatically, then added sadly, "No one is being fired. But the loss of our headquarters building means that most of the jobs that you formerly filled here, are now– gone. I sincerely wish that wasn't the case. I love this plant, this town, and all of you. This plant formed the core of our company as we made additional acquisitions. Our entire company is named Piermont because this plant is the heart of our company. Although Piermont has seventy-two plants and locations, and I'd be lucky to name even the managers among our many thousands of employees, I can name almost everyone in this hall. When I learned of the fire, I rejoiced that no one was hurt– but then I began to think about the impact that the loss of our building would have on your lives and the community. Our company isn't just buildings, it's people too. And we're trying to do the best we can for both you and the company as a whole. We have four paper plants that produce no paper at all, while here at Brandon we operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. As we acquired more plants, and our capacity to produce paper exceeded sales, we did everything we could to minimize the impact on our existing plants first. We refused to reduce operations at our currently producing plants to begin operations elsewhere, even though the people in towns where our plants are shuttered have pleaded with us to open their plant. There, as we are doing here, we offered to help them relocate, either temporarily or permanently, to places where Piermont jobs were available. Relocation is about as far from an ideal solution as you can get, but it is a solution for many. Anyone here who has a spouse, or significant other, working in the plant, and who wants to relocate, can be assured that we'll find a position in the JC plant for that other individual as well if he or she also wishes to relocate.

"But anyone who doesn't wish to relocate, or isn't among the people that we'll need to continue the limited headquarters services provided here, will have to be furloughed. Furloughed employees always receive first consideration for any positions that open up in their town or anywhere else in the Piermont operation. For example, at this time there is no work for cafeteria employees, but they will be needed once a new building is completed here. So if any remain interested in employment with Piermont when we again have need for their skills, they will be immediately rehired, with a continuation of previous benefits and salary levels."

"When the new building is completed," one of the attendees asked, "will our headquarters return to Brandon?"

I recognized the person asking the question as one of the data entry operators from the DP department.

"Presently, Pamela, the plan is for the new building to house a cafeteria, a small office to support plant operations, and the regional headquarters. Data processing, as you know it, will not be returning here once we get the department set up in JC. The necessity of having a stable environment for our DP department, with its temperature, power, and humidity considerations, is a prime consideration in my decision to relocate our headquarters to Jeff City. It's not the sort of operation that you can simply pick up and move easily. And since the DP department will be in Missouri, the accounting department must be there as well. The inter-dependability of each department on others was determined before a final decision was made. Although some departments, or even sections within a department, can operate remotely, most must be in close proximity to others for our headquarters to operate cohesively."
"Will the sales office here continue?" a person who I recognized as a salesperson asked.

"A decision has not been made about that yet, Lenny. There is a sales office currently in JC, and any sales people relocating will join that office."
"Will there be any promotions for people relocating," another person asked. I didn't know his full name, only that his first name was Edward. I knew that he was fairly new to the accounting department.

"Everyone who has been with the company for any appreciable amount of time knows that we prefer to promote from within, Edward, if we have a qualified individual available. As much as I'd personally love for everyone here to relocate, I know that won't happen. Family commitments and other considerations will prevent it. So it's reasonable to assume that promotional opportunities will exist for the people who do relocate. But at this point, Edward, I can't tell you what those positions will be, or if there'll be one for which you're qualified.

"The choices are limited," I said to everyone. "You can relocate and remain in your current position, or possibly a more advanced position, or, remain here and be furloughed unless you're fortunate to be placed in one of the few jobs that will have to be filled. This move is not a capricious decision. It is necessitated by the fire."

When no one else spoke up, I ended the meeting with, "You must make your decision by Friday ten a.m. I wish I could give you more time, but we haven't got the time to spare. We must find people to fill the slots that remain empty because some people don't wish to relocate."

I knew that two and half days was not much time for a person to make a decision that would perhaps affect their entire future, and that of their families, but it was the best I could offer. We had to get the new headquarters set up and operating, and we had a lot of preliminary work to do. We had to make travel arrangements for those coming to JC, arrange for their temporary living accommodations, and plan the reconstruction of our headquarters infrastructure.
I wished that I could walk around the hall and commiserate with the people whose lives my actions were impacting so dramatically, but I knew that there might be a lot of pent-up emotions and even anger, so it was best that I just leave. As I walked out of the hall, I thought about the situation from a personal standpoint. I was facing the sure disintegration of my family as my sisters left home to follow their dreams, and now I was facing the disintegration of what I had come to see as my extended family at the workplace. It suddenly seemed like my entire world had begun to collapse around me.

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End Of Chapter Fifty-Two

To Be Continued In Chapter Fifty-Three