It was in this booming mill town of Gastonia in the 1960s that 9-year-old Warlick, the son of a real estate sales agent and a bank teller, was reading the sports section of the paper when he saw an announcement for the West Gastonia Boys Club team tryouts. By the 1920s, Gastonia, with more than 100 mills, had emerged as the country’s leader in combed cotton production. That same year, the steam-powered Gastonia Cotton Manufacturing Company was established, and a mill town was born. ![]() In January 1877, less than a year after the Chester and Lenoir Narrow Gauge Railroad built a line that intersected the Atlanta and Richmond Airline Railroad, the town of Gastonia was incorporated with 104 residents. Warlick’s roots in public service have their beginnings in a textile manufacturing town outside of Charlotte, North Carolina. In March of this year, as the coronavirus descended on the United States and the White House needed solutions to a shortage of COVID supplies, it was Warlick, ever the public servant like his hero Jasper, who answered the call. He does not have the heart to remove the nest-a seemingly trivial matter for the CEO of a textile manufacturer that generates $2 billion in sales a year to concern himself with, but Warlick has spent his career finding opportunities in situations most people overlook, and details matter. A small sparrow flies over Warlick’s head to a nest she had built on an electrical box. The house is nestled between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic. Inside the house, beyond tall mahogany French doors, a mural depicts Jasper’s heroic actions. When the flag flying over Fort Moultrie was shot down by the British navy, Jasper fearlessly rescued it while under fire and held it aloft until a new flagstaff could be mounted.Īndy Warlick, ’79, lounges in a wicker rocking chair on the back porch of his Sullivan’s Island home. The island thoroughfare is named for Revolutionary War soldier Sgt. The day after Carolina Day, the anniversary of the Battle of Sullivan’s Island when British forces in 1776 tried to invade the small barrier island near the entrance of the Charleston harbor, Jasper Boulevard is lined with flags in celebration of Independence Day. ![]() There is no sign of the haze created by a Sahara Desert dust cloud two days earlier or, for that matter, the coronavirus and the racial unrest that led news headlines. June 29 on Sullivan’s Island is hot and clear. Together we’ll overcome all the challenges we face, including COVID-19, and emerge as a stronger nation, stronger communities.” Courage, can-do spirit, determination will allow you to triumph. “Attitude, opportunity, serving others-these are the things that will make you great. "We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to onshore these critical supply chains long-term and we look forward to working with the administration and Congress to advance long-term policies to bolster this critical production capacity here in the United States.“Class of 2020, you’re graduating in one of the most challenging times in recent national history, but you’re also entering the economy in one of the most exciting times because the need for leadership is so great,” Anderson Warlick, ’79, told the graduates at the virtual commencement exercises for The Citadel Graduate College in May. We appreciate the administration’s commitment to purchase fully made in America masks and we believe this is a significant opportunity to continue to showcase our incredible domestic textile industry and all of its capabilities. Kim Glas, president and CEO of NCTO: “We want to sincerely thank President Biden for his leadership and support of American manufacturing workers with this purchase. textile industry has produced over a billion lifesaving PPE and other medical products over the last year. Since the spring of 2020, both Ferrara and Parkdale have retooled their production chains to help produce millions of masks and gowns to help workers on the frontlines. We are honored to have this opportunity.” "We also greatly appreciate the strong support and partnership of Workers United/SEIU to help amplify the needs to bolster this critical supply chain. Ferrara is proud to partner with Parkdale Mills and we want to thank the administration for supporting our workforce, who have sacrificed so much during the pandemic to answer the call of the nation to produce million masks. Gabrielle Ferrara, chief operating officer and owner, of Ferrara Manufacturing: “This is another amazing moment for our industry to come together to produce lifesaving PPE for people who need it most.
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