Joseph Kujawinski Sr., the founder of scrap company Cleveland Corp., Zion, Ill., died in early July at age 79.
Kujawinski, the founder and CEO of Cleveland Corp., started his recycling company more than 50 years ago with a 2-ton lift-gate truck, picking up scrap metal from local industrial businesses.
His co-workers at Cleveland Corp. say Kujawinski “worked a barrel route seven days a week, at a time when [many] of the industrial metals were being disposed of in the landfills.”
The company Kujawinski built became Cleveland Corp., which now has several locations in Illinois and Wisconsin and processing equipment that handles “several hundred thousand tons of industrial scrap metal per month,” according to the company. Kujawinski also expanded his company into recycling scrap paper and corrugated cardboard.
A statement prepared by his colleagues declares, “With all of Joe Kujawinski Sr.’s accomplishments, dedication, commitment, perseverance, and loyalty, he will be sadly missed. His commitment to provide a cleaner environment through recycling will not be forgotten. His work ethic has been passed along to his sons, Robert and Joe Jr., who will now follow his dream by leading Cleveland Corp. into a brighter future.”
Kujawinski, a Navy veteran, is survived by his wife Carolyn, his sons Joseph and Robert, his daughter Margie as well as several grandchildren, great-grandchildren and step-children.
Memorial contributions can be sent to the NE Hospice of Illinois in Barrington or the Sage Cancer Center in McHenry, Ill.