The gathering of employees was a self-organized event that didn’t involve the company. NCR has moved headquarters functions to Duluth Ga., pulling most of the 1,300 jobs it had in Dayton to the Atlanta area. On July 1, the former headquarters building and its 115 acres will be transferred to control of the University of Dayton, which bought the property for $18 million late last year.
Julie Hanson, a 29-year NCR employee and a resident of Dayton’s Belmont area, was pleased with the turnout, estimating that some 500 people were on hand. That was impressive, given how quickly the event came together, she said.
“I think it’s really wonderful that everyone could get together,” Hanson said. “NCR would not be what it is without the people who made it.”
Hanson got her start with NCR at a former headquarters building off South Main Street, now razed. Not all parts of the building were air-conditioned, she recalled.
“Let me tell you, in the summer, it was hot,” she said.
Phil Levin, 54, a 33-year employee who plans to retire from NCR on Oct. 1, remembered his first day at the company, when he was assured that “Ma Cash” took care of its employees.
Still, Levin said he was thinking about “a lot of good memories that overshadowed the bitterness.” He and his wife stood for a photograph Thursday of 12 couples who met while working at NCR and who are still together. That photograph spoke volumes, he believed.
“We all recognize that we owe NCR,” Levin said.
“I couldn’t have said it any better,” agreed retiree Mary Delong.
Delong, like many others, wore a sticker that identified her and her years of service to the company. “It really should be 45 years,” Delong said, referring to her sticker, explaining that she worked five years for NCR as a contractor.
David Albrecht worked for NCR demonstrating products and technologies from 1982 to 1995. “Those were 13 good years,” he said.
The 75-year-old recalled showcasing NCR products for potential customers in a presentation center, both at the headquarters and another building. “It was a really nice display of products. We had customers come in from all over the world to visit.”
A shelter at the park held a display of historical photographs and letters, including one 1903 message from a customer praising an NCR cash register.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2390 or tgnau@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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