Willard C. Starcher
Willard C. Starcher, Inc. was founded by Willard Starcher in 1938. Prior to opening the company, Starcher had worked as a schoolteacher and then as a mechanic fixing generators and refrigerators. He opened Willard C. Starcher in his hometown of Spencer, West Virginia, in a garage behind his house. More than 80 years later, the company continues to operate out of Spencer.
“We’re located in rural West Virginia, in a town of 2,600 people,” says John Hill, Starcher’s grandson and current company president. “And it probably had 2,600 people 85 years ago, when the company was started. But it’s our town and that’s where we’ve chosen to stay.”
In what would become a reoccurring story for the leadership of Willard C. Starcher, Starcher briefly left the company to serve his country in World War II. During his time as a civilian technician in the United States Navy, Starcher’s wife, Dorthy Starcher, managed the company.
“Our mission statement is ‘Do it right the first time,’” Hill says. “I think that’s one of the things that the people here are very proud of. What we want people to say after working with us is, ‘These folks are professional. They do things the right way and they’re treating the customers honorably.”
That mission has served Willard C. Starcher well for 85 years, as it has grown from Willard Starcher’s garage to a company that now sells both hardgoods and equipment as well as compressed industrial, medical and specialty gases.
Congratulations to all GAWDA members celebrating milestone anniversaries in 2023.
GAWDA members represent the best-of-the-best companies in the gases and welding industries. Each year in the Summer issue, we recognize those GAWDA Members celebrating milestone anniversaries. In the Q3 issue’s President’s Column, GAWDA President Robert Anders explored the three C’s of longevity. We want to add a fourth C for this column: Congratulations to all those GAWDA members celebrating anniversaries this year! And if you have a milestone anniversary coming up in 2024 and would like to be featured in this column next year, please reach out today at steveg@gawdamedia.com
