Metzgers Inc.

Joe Metzger, 50, president of Metzgers, passed away May 5 in Hospice of Northwest Ohio, according to the Toledo Blade. He was diagnosed with colon cancer in November of 2011.

TOLEDO, OH—Joe Metzger, 50, president of Metzgers, passed away Monday in Hospice of Northwest Ohio, according to the Toledo Blade. He was diagnosed with colon cancer in November of 2011.

Joseph J. Metzger, 50, who focused on growth by diversifying the typesetting business his father founded, died Monday in Hospice of Northwest Ohio, South Detroit Avenue. He learned he had colon cancer in November, 2011.

Metzger was president (of Metzgers) and with his brother, Tom—the COO—a co-owner. He was inducted into the 2010 Printing Impressions/RIT Printing Industry Hall of Fame.

“We were best partners, best friends, best brothers,” his brother said. “We just read each other so well and did everything so well. He was so outgoing, and I’m the inside guy, the operations guy, and we met in the middle all

Joe Metzger announced that he will step down as president of Metzgers while he begins a battle with cancer. He plans be on leave from the company for two months and fully expects to return to Metzgers in a reduced capacity to help the leadership team continue to grow, strengthen and improve the company.

Metzgers introduced a micro-site to sell large-format presentation checks under the brand Print Big Checks and an online digital print store, branded The Printing Shack, to provide common business and home items, such as business cards and flyers/sell sheets.

It is not surprising to note that much of the commercial printing industry news in 2010 was dominated by the continuing struggle of printers trying to reconcile employee ranks with dwindling press hours. White-collar crime was rampant and, in some instances, theft indirectly led to closures.

The rooftop photovoltaic solar array covers more than 9,500 sq.ft. and will generate up to 13 percent of Metzger's annual power usage. “Most large solar installations are at public institutions, but to be one of the largest solar installations on the roof of a privately held company in Ohio is something our team and our customers can be proud of,” states Joe Metzger, company president.

It's hard to believe that Monday's Printing Impressions/RIT Printing Industry Hall of Fame awards ceremony held during Graph Expo in Chicago marked the 25th anniversary of the Hall of Fame. An award created when I assumed the role of editor-in-chief in 1985 to recognize individual industry achievement, this year's induction class was certainly worthy of our important silver anniversary milestone.

Look up infectious enthusiasm in the dictionary, and you might find a picture of Joe Metzger. The president of Toledo, OH-based Metzgers Printing + Mailing has a legendary penchant for getting people excited about anything related to the printing industry, particularly new technologies that can benefit his customers and enable the company to add another dimension to its offerings.

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