By noon almost 300 former Armstrong Tire workers and their family members had packed the Morgantown Shrine Hall for potluck and reminiscing at their first-ever reunion.

Mike Harrell, who worked at the plant in management 28 years until it transferred ownership to Fidelity Tire in 1987, said he spearheaded the event because otherwise, &uot;the only time we get together is at funeral or wakes.&uot;

As some filed through a buffet line that spanned at least four long tables or looking at photos and other memorabilia, others talked about what made former workers and their spouses loyal to the memory of the plant so many years later.

&uot;Armstrong was good to our family,&uot; said Fay Callendar, one of dozens of widows and widowers among the crowd. She said she and her late husband, Oliver, &uot;were able to raise family &045; three children &045; and buy a home&uot; thanks to Armstrong Tire.

&uot;And we thank them for allowing us (spouses of now-deceased workers) for letting us be a part of this,&uot; Callendar added, referring to the event’s organizers.

Harrell said he feels the same way.

&uot;I don’t have much, but what I do have I owe in large part to Armstrong, and a lot of people feel that way,&uot; he said. &uot;What brings us back? Appreciation, for one thing &045; appreciation of the better life and higher standard of living it allowed us to have.&uot;

But James Reeves, who worked 29 years at the plant as a mechanic, said it’s more than that &045; it’s a sense of family the workers shared, and still share. &uot;We really are one big family,&uot; added Roy Doughty. &uot;We love each other.&uot;

That was evident in the enthusiastic handshakes they shared, in the way they huddled in conversation punctuated by laughter and the way they broke into smiles when recognizing each other after all these years.

&uot;I’ve broken out crying several times, I’m so happy,&uot; said Bessie Avery, who started work at Armstrong making munitions during World War II and stayed there 18 1/2 years. &uot;This has just been wonderful.&uot;

At age 94, Avery can still recall vividly when she began work at Armstrong.

&uot;Me and another lady went over there to see if we could get jobs. I wanted to help out with the war (effort). And it was good pay,&uot; Avery said.

How good? She left a waitressing job in Winnsboro, La., making a total of $12.50 for seven days’ work; she signed on at Armstrong making more than $12 the first week &045; for only three days’ work. &uot;You could really make a living, now,&uot; she

said.

Not that it came easy, mind you. Jimmy McLeod, one of three living workers that started at the plant when it opened in 1939, said that more than anything, he could sum up life at Armstrong in two words: &uot;Hard work.&uot;

But Harrell said one thing he remembers most about the plant was the way workers were like family and were loyal to the company that made their families’ lives better.

&uot;In generations to come, our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will need a place to make a living,&uot; Harrell said. &uot;And that type of loyalty to a company helps attract industry. Maybe we can lead by example.&uot;