While the U.S. lumber industry is still recovering from a bruising couple of economic years, four innovative American hardwood companies are using the unique strategic service of Marketplace Chaplains to help their employees and family members in this high stress profession.

Recently, logging news stories have reported slow and steady growth for lumber company profits in 2012, with a close eye on an uncertain economic future. But veteran industry leaders realize employee problems are ongoing and unaffected by the economy, and using Marketplace Chaplains has proven an excellent management resource and beneficial tool to the company’s bottom line.

“I learned of Marketplace Chaplains through a good friend, Galen Weaber of Weaber Inc. Pennsylvania. I can truly say it has been one of the most rewarding ‘finds’ in my corporate career,” said Jonathan Martin, Chairman & CEO of RoyOMartin, based in Alexandria, Louisiana.

“In 2002 – 2003 RoyOMartin lumber company embarked on a vision to be the employer of choice in Central Louisiana, and Marketplace Chaplains was a huge part of that. People are blown away when they see we have a staffed chaplain’s office.”

“In every facility, the chaplains interact with every one of our 1,200 employees on a weekly basis.  Our chaplains, under the leadership of Chaplains Ron and Debbie Perry, have held numerous prayer sessions, weddings and funerals.”

Other national lumber companies which use the services of Dallas-based Marketplace Chaplains are Frank Miller Lumber in Union City, Indiana, and Ballie Lumber based in Hamburg, New York.

“If we don’t have Marketplace Chaplains, then we can’t say we did everything we could to help people,” said Dan Hackett, President & CEO of Frank Miller Lumber. “That’s what we want to do.”

“They (Marketplace Chaplains) did such a good job of explaining the program and when we had a crisis, they were there to help. Now it’s something that they all want to use,” Frank Miller Lumber Chairman Martha Mathias added.

Together, the 4 companies have more than 2,000 employees in the stressful and sometimes dangerous business. Having an on-site chaplain service has been a key for the company executives looking for greater growth and employee security, the leaders said.

“Having a third party as our spiritual executive VP has been a godsend in keeping us as a family enterprise that is well respected in every community we operate in,” Martin said.

“It’s very evident that these companies are committed to the total well-being of their employees,” Ridgeway said.