We talk to four of the original folks at this DC in Menomonie, Wisconsin.
Since Walmart Distribution Center 6025 celebrated its 1993 opening with a local high school marching band, it was only fitting to call up the band to ring in its 30th anniversary — and to celebrate the 100 associates who have been with the DC since the start!
DC 6025 in Menomonie, Wisconsin, invited the University of Wisconsin-Stout marching band to parade through their facility amidst balloons and festivities. “It was such a fun week of activities to celebrate our 30-year anniversary with our associates and recognize their great service,” General Manager Marcea Weiss says.
Coincidently, Marcea explains, the facility went live on their first loop of the new automated Symbotic system — “just about 30 years to the day of when we started shipping freight in our legacy operation in 1993.”
We got to speak with four of these longtime associates about what makes their team special. Meet Leanna Beranek, Scott Freiermuth, Dave Merten and Eric Franseen.
“I honestly feel blessed to work here,” Leanna (pictured above) says. As an asset protection associate, she loves that each day is different. “It's not the same thing every day! You never know what you're gonna get.”
Every week, Leanna spends a couple days in the asset protection office and a couple days outside at the truck gate. “I'm a person who likes to make people happy,” Leanna shares. “So it's kind of nice when you can just talk to people and brighten their day.”
Scott (pictured above) is another asset protection associate who enjoys the variety each day brings. He also embraces our culture of innovation. “One thing Walmart does a lot is change, so if you are able to adapt to that you'll fit right in,” he says.
“We were all pretty young when we started here, and most of us were at that age where we were just getting married,” Scott recalls. Over the years, the team has grown up together. They saw each other start families and then watched their kids grow up and start their own lives.
Working at Walmart is truly a family affair for Dave (pictured above). His wife was an associate before going back to school and becoming a nurse. Later, his daughter did the same. And today his son-in-law works in receiving.
Dave started in loading and says getting into maintenance is a career moment he’s particularly proud of. “My goal was to get into the position where I am today,” he explains.
As a maintenance technician, Dave helps keep the center’s conveyors and electronics moving. He’s also elbows-deep in the new high-tech system being installed.
“I've had people come up to me and say, ‘How can you stay there so long?’ And I say, ‘I love what I do.’”
When Eric (pictured above) looks back on his career of almost 31 years at Walmart, he recalls setting up what’s now the Menomonie Supercenter, Store 1819. “I walked into the store when it was brand-new. Nothing was set up yet. We got that store opened up and then when DC 6025 was built across the street, I transferred over here.”
Eric started driving forklifts about 28 years ago. “The way I explain it to people is, a lot of people go to amusement parks and drive golf carts and all this other stuff and spend a lot of money doing that. And I can come here, and I get paid to drive around on a really nice forklift.”
With all that DC 6025 has to celebrate, you might want to keep an eye out for marching bands next time you’re driving the forklift, Eric!
