Michigan Sugar Company

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Lexie Robinson is Michigan Sugar Company’s new Senior Recruiter. A native of Muskegon, Lexie graduated from North Muskegon High School in 1997. She attended Purdue University, graduating in 2002 with a bachelor’s degree in retail management. From there, she moved to Chicago to work as a Retail Manager for Marshall Field’s (now Macy’s). In 2003, Lexie moved back to Muskegon and began working as an Administrative Assistant at Waterstone Insurance Agency Inc. After two years with the company, Lexie spent the next several years as a stay-at-home mom to her two daughters, Cambell and Harper. Cambell, 19, attends the University of Wisconsin and is majoring in architecture, and Harper, 15, is a sophomore at Mona Shores High School in Muskegon. Lexie took a role as a Marketing Coordinator for Lakeside Surfaces Inc. in 2013, and in 2015 began working as an Operations Coordinator/Purchasing at Andrie Inc., a marine transportation and service company. For the last three years, Lexie has worked at LHH as an Executive Recruiter, specializing in the areas of Human Resources, Engineering, and Purchasing. In her free time, she enjoys golfing, reading, cooking, and enjoying lake life in Muskegon. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar Company family, Lexie! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Meet Chris Roka, Project Engineer at Michigan Sugar Company’s Bay City factory location. A native of Shields, Chris attended Swan Valley High School and graduated in 1995. After high school, he completed an apprenticeship program through the American Welding Society to become a certified pipefitting/welding journeyman. He also earned a Certified Welding Inspector Certification. Chris has worked at Hemlock Semiconductor for the past 19 years. His first job with the company was as a welder and pipefitter, and he held various other positions through the years, including in the pipe shop, as a facilities and work coordinator, and most recently, a Capital Construction Team Lead. “I’m always looking to learn something new,” Chris said. “Michigan Sugar offers opportunities and growth within the company.” Chris and his wife Gina live in Hemlock and have three children: Colin, 21; Ava, 17; and Dylan, 14, and two dogs, a Bernese Mountain Dog named Maggie and an Irish Setter/poodle mix named Gus. In their free time, Chris and Gina enjoy spending time together with family, especially watching their kids play sports and walking their dogs. Chris also likes to hunt, fish, and hike. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar family, Chris! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Meet Deven Hall, Michigan Sugar Company's new Packaging & Warehousing Reliability Engineer. He will be working out of the company's Croswell facility. A native of Traverse City, Deven graduated in 2012 from Traverse City West High School, where he played football and ran track. He earned his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Michigan Technological University in 2017. Deven comes to Michigan Sugar Company from Besser Company in Alpena, where he was a Mechanical Engineer for the last year. Prior to his job with Besser, he worked for Tube Fab/Roman Engineering in Afton as a Manufacturing Engineer, and for Gerdau SBQ in Monroe and Jackson as a Management Associate, Improvement Facilitator, and Routine Maintenance Supervisor. He said he was drawn to Michigan Sugar because he was looking for a challenging career focused on reliability and the opportunity to focus on problem solving. His wife's family also lives in Saginaw County, so this gave his family a chance to be closer to them. Deven and his wife Samantha currently live in Millersburg near Rogers City. They have a 2-year-old son named Henry and an Alaskan Shepherd named Kora. In his free time, Deven enjoys going to the movies (his favorite movie is "Lucky Number Slevin" from 2006), shooting guns on the range, gaming, and doing home improvement projects. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar team, Deven! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Meet Romans Kreislers, Michigan Sugar Company's new Continuous Improvement Supervisor for the company's Packaging & Warehousing operation in Bay City. A native of Riga, Latvia, Romans graduated in 1998 from Riga Technical University with a degree in mechanical engineering. He came the United States in 2000 and earned a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Walsh College in Troy in 2007. Romans comes to Michigan Sugar from Nexteer Automotive where he was a Senior NPS/Operational Excellence Specialist for the last five years. Prior to that role, he held multiple positions with Nexteer from 2014 to 2025, including Manufacturing Area Manager and Production Group Leader. His professional background also includes working as a Simulation Engineer for Spectrum Automation Co. in Livonia, as a Robot Programmer for FFT-EDAG in Auburn Hills, and as a Site Supervisor for Ingram Roofing Inc. in Rochester Hills. Romans said he was attracted to Michigan Sugar because he was looking for a professional change and challenge, as well as an opportunity to grow with a local company. "The company is growing and I've heard very good things about Michigan Sugar as a family oriented company," he said. Romans and his wife Kindra live in Saginaw Township and have two children -Jennasis, 9, and Shane, 21, as well as two dogs - Onyx and Lexi. In his free time, he enjoys mountain biking, camping, and coaching his daughter's cross-country team. He also is a soccer and hockey fan whose family used to billet Saginaw Spirit players. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar family, Romans! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight

VETERAN OF THE MONTH: Congratulations to Andy Barnett, Michigan Sugar Company’s Veteran of the Month for February 2025. A native of Carrollton, Andy graduated from Eisenhower High School (now Heritage High School) in Saginaw Township in 1984. Following graduation and continuing his family's tradition of service, Andy enlisted in the U.S. Army and completed his basic training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. He was one of only five recruits in his class to score a perfect 30 out of 30 on his end-of-cycle test. Following basic training, Andy served as a food service specialist for two years as part of 94 Bravo at Seneca Army Depot in Upstate New York. When asked what drew him to the job, Andy responded with a wink and a smile saying, "The Army was facing a shortage of cooks at the time, so there was a need to fill. Plus, the signing bonus was the largest at the time.” Following his time in the Army, Andy joined the Michigan Sugar family in 1989 as a Sweeper and Flumer at the Carrollton factory, which is now a packaging and warehousing facility. Following the site’s closure in 2005, he worked for several companies in the Great Lakes Bay Region as a CDL driver before rejoining Michigan Sugar in 2009 as a Sugar Packer in Caro, where he still works today as a Silo Attendant. Andy currently lives in Caro with his wife of 22 years, Becky. They have three adult children - Felicia, Amanda, and Andrew, Jr., and four grandchildren - Jaden, Damien, Isabelle, and Brycen. While the family has no pets, Andy describes himself as a “former scorpion and tarantula enthusiast.” In his spare time, Andy serves as founder and President of the Tall Boys 4-Wheeling Club, plays guitar and billiards (he's a self-described “nasty” pool player), and participates in many outdoor hobbies. He has the goal of snorkeling Pictured Rocks this summer. Most of all, he still loves cooking for his large Italian family. When asked if there was anything else Andy wanted to mention, he said, “It ain’t easy being Andy, but it’s a lot of fun.” Anyone who knows Andy knows that statement perfectly captures his enthusiastic outlook on life. Congratulations, Andy, on being named Veteran of the Month. We thank you for your service to our country and cooperative. To nominate a Michigan Sugar Company employee for Veteran of the Month, email Tyler Kring at tyler.kring@michigansugar.com. #ThankYouVeterans #MakingLifeSweeter #veterans

1 BILLION POUNDS PRODUCED: On Tuesday, Feb. 25, Michigan Sugar Company passed a significant milestone by producing its 1 billionth pound of sugar as part of this year's sugarbeet processing campaign. The mark is the collective effort of Michigan Sugar's four facilities and employees on the agriculture, factory, and packaging and warehousing teams. To date, the four facilities have produced the following sugar: Bay City - 358.62 million pounds. Caro - 181.28 million pounds. Croswell - 235.88 million pounds. Sebewaing - 224.34 million pounds. To note the accomplishment, we caught up this morning with Bay City Factory Manager Tim Schuster and Assistant Factory Manager Mitch Keyes who graciously posed for this photo pointing to white granulated sugar cooling inside the sugar cooler. The sugar goes from the cooler into the storage silos. Michigan Sugar's 2024-25 sugarbeet processing campaign is on schedule to wrap up in mid- to late-March. Congratulations to the entire Michigan Sugar Company team for surpassing this significant production milestone! #MakingLifeSweeter

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Michigan Sugar Company welcomes Leo Dey as a new Customer Service Representative. A native of Saginaw, Leo graduated from Heritage High School in 2004. He went on to attend Delta College and Northwood University, graduating with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 2010. During high school and college, Leo spent a total of 10 years working in various roles at Little Caesars. After college, Leo moved to Las Vegas and began his career working in retail management and loss prevention for Toys“R”Us and Ross Dress for Less. When he moved back to Michigan, in the Grand Rapids area, Leo worked as a Store Manager for a Speedway gas station, as well as in armored truck transportation at GardaWorld. Before joining the Michigan Sugar Company team, Leo worked at Spectrum in the Dispatch Center, where his role focused on managing inbound calls, dispatch tickets, outages, and working with the escalations team. He began his role at Michigan Sugar earlier this month. Leo, his wife, and their two children, live in Essexville. They enjoy spending time together as a family, especially enjoying all that Northern Michigan has to offer. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar family, Leo! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Brad Vanfulpen joined Michigan Sugar Company as the Director of Financial Reporting and Treasury earlier this month. A native of Kalamazoo, Brad graduated from Loy Norrix High School in 2000. From there, he attended Western Michigan University where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 2005. Brad began his career in the Detroit area at PricewaterhouseCoopers as a Senior Associate, working with several large automotive companies. Both of Brad’s parents had careers in the health care industry, and it was an area that had always interested him. That interest led Brad to pursue an opportunity at MidMichigan Health (now MyMichigan Health) in 2009 in the Internal Audit Department. Brad spent two years at MidMichigan Health, working in both financial planning and analysis and corporate performance management. In 2011, Brad took a role as a Senior Internal Auditor at Dow Corning. He spent just more than two years in that role before transitioning to a Senior External Reporting Specialist position in 2013. When Dow Corning became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dow in 2016, Brad took a position at Dow, where he has spent the last eight years of his career. He has held several positions at Dow, including Senior Treasury Accountant, Senior Cost Accountant, Treasury Middle Office Manager, Corporate Financial Planning Manager, and most recently, Senior Treasury Director. Brad and his wife Kelsey live in Midland with their three children, Clementine (6), Henry (3), and George (10 months). They enjoy camping with family and friends, especially in the Petoskey area. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar family, Brad! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Andy Wojcik of Bay City, Shift Maintenance Supervisor at the Bay City factory, joined the Michigan Sugar Company team in December 2024. A native of Bay City, Andy graduated from Bangor Township John Glenn High School in 2018. From there, he enlisted in the United States Navy where he served for six years. During his military service, Andy worked as a Nuclear Submarine Mechanic and was stationed in South Carolina, Connecticut, and most recently at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. After completing his time in the Navy, Andy found his current role at Michigan Sugar through RecruitMilitary, an organization that connects employers to highly qualified, talented veterans. In his free time, Andy enjoys working on cars, playing the piano, and watching football. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar family, Andy! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Meet Zach Warnement, Michigan Sugar Company's newest Customer Service Representative. A native of Bay City, Zach is a 2013 graduate of Bay City Central High School, where he played trumpet in the band all four years and participated in swimming, tennis, football, and lacrosse. He earned his associate degree from Delta College in 2015 and his bachelor's degree in Engineering Technology Management from Saginaw Valley State University in 2019. He also worked for seven years as a lifeguard at the Dow Bay Area Family Y in Bay City. While at SVSU, Zach was hired as an Advanced Purchasing Launch Leader Co-op at Nexteer Automotive and eventually turned that into a full-time job as a Production Launch Leader. He later worked as an Expediter in Nexteer's Prototype Center where he was involved in the launching of the steering system for BMW's electric vehicle. In 2023, Zach went to work for Dow in Midland as a Supply Chain Planner. He joined the Michigan Sugar team in January, saying he was drawn to the company after years of curiosity and the opportunity to plant his career in a "stable, local job." Zach and his wife Katelyn live in Bay City and have two cats - Pickles and Twix. In his free time, Zach enjoys golf, disc golf, hunting, bicycle riding, and playing video games. Welcome to the Michigan Sugar family, Zach! #MakingLifeSweeter #CreatingGrowthandOpportunity #plantyourcareer #SWEETJOBS #EmployeeSpotlight