WestPoint Stevens' Assistant Director of Quality Says Tri-County
Degree, and Consequent Confidence, Gave Her Opportunity to Advance

CONTACT: LISA GARRETT, EXT. 2315

FOR RELEASE DURING TEXTILE WEEK
(By Lisa Garrett)

CLEMSON --- In the late 1970's, 18-year-old Helen Roach would pass by the WestPoint Stevens board room on her way to her job in the plant's fitted sheet department and gaze into the window -- convinced this was the closest she would ever come to an executive meeting room.

"I never imagined I would be sitting here," said Roach, who, 30 years later, is assistant director of quality for the company and regularly attends and conducts meetings in the very room that mesmerized her as a teenage production worker.

"It was my dream to advance," said Roach, "and back then I never believed it would happen."

For the past year-and-a-half, she has been responsible for all of the bed products of WestPoint Stevens' Divisional Offices. She also works with WestPoint Stevens' greige, finishing, fabrication and distribution plants to handle quality issues that come up during the course of manufacturing. She also works with top executives to make decisions, and deals with customers, such as Ralph Lauren, K-Mart, Sears and Macy's, on a one-on-one basis.

She has been associated with Stevens for 23 years, and credits her Textile Management Technology degree from Tri-County Technical College as a factor in her rise up the company's ladder.

She began as a production employee following her graduation from the Oconee Adult Education Center. She had gotten married as a teen and consequently dropped out of high school. "I got sidetracked, but I got back on track. It was never easy, but I focused on what I wanted," said the Seneca resident.

One of those things was a desire to advance in the company. After expressing her interest to the personnel manager, he directed her to the Textile program at Tri-County. She began as an evening student, attending classes four nights a week. "I was married and had two small children. It was very hard attending class and holding down a full time job. I wouldn't have finished without the encouragement from former department head Bonner Pratt," she remembers.

"He really helped to build my confidence. It took me two-and-one-half years to finish the program, but he was an encourager, so I felt I could do this," she said. Roach is the first female to graduate from the College's Textile Management Technology department.

Often, she says she contemplated dropping out when she got tired and felt overwhelmed. "Bonner would step in, and he knew when to give me that extra push when I needed it," she said.

When she graduated with honors in 1982, she advanced to full-time supervisor in the production department. She went on to hold several different managerial positions and learned almost every area of the plant. "But I always came back to quality. It's my niche. It's not a boring routine job. You can't plan your day because you never know what will happen," she said.

"Looking back, I never would have been in a position I am in without the encouragement and confidence I received at Tri-County. It's much more than the technical knowledge.

"My degree and the confidence I gained gave me the opportunity to advance," she said.

In an effort to give back to the College, six years ago she began teaching evening classes for the department.

"I recognize myself in these students. I give a speech to the students the first night of classes. I tell them if they re in a production job and want to move up, they can have it. But it won't drop in your lap.

"I tell my story, and they relate to me. I tell them if I can get the degree, then they can, too. It's important to have a personal relationship with them. I want to do for them what Bonner did for me," she said.

"I encourage the employees in my office to go for the degree. The paper will open the door for you and give you the opportunity to prove yourself. Without the degree, I'd still be a production worker," she said.

"My next goal is to drop 'assistant' from my title and become the director of quality for WestPoint Stevens."
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