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a big year<br />
<strong>Eastern</strong> <strong>Iowa</strong> <strong>Farmer</strong> photo / Brooke Taylor<br />
John Noonan, who handles purchasing and marketing for the retail division of Cascade Lumber in Cascade,<br />
talks with customer Tom English at his Bernard farm. Noonan said he and the store staff have been working<br />
hard to meet customer needs the last 18 months. “There’s no doubt it’s been stressful,” Noonan said. “This is<br />
a retail business. Things will be back to normal, but it is hard to say what the new normal is.”<br />
seen many ups and downs in<br />
business cycles, the past 18<br />
months is unlike anything he’s<br />
experienced in his more than<br />
four decades in the business.<br />
“It’s historic. I don’t know<br />
what hasn’t been touched by<br />
workforce issues. The supply<br />
chain was another issue. The<br />
pandemic really forced us to<br />
look at what we’ve done and<br />
what we’re going to do in the<br />
future,” he said.<br />
Cascade Lumber used the<br />
situation as an opportunity<br />
to cultivate a new generation<br />
of employees who will bring<br />
fresh skills and hopefully be<br />
long-term members of the<br />
team, Noonan said. He and<br />
others in similar businesses<br />
have adjusted practices to help<br />
meet customer needs; and<br />
they’ve learned, above all, that<br />
being adaptable is key.<br />
Providing Ag Education to Students in Clinton<br />
and Jackson Counties<br />
64 <strong>Eastern</strong> <strong>Iowa</strong> <strong>Farmer</strong> | <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2021</strong> eifarmer.com<br />
<strong>Eastern</strong><strong>Iowa</strong><strong>Farmer</strong>_<strong>Fall</strong><strong>2021</strong>.indd 64<br />
9/15/21 10:24 am
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