The Corrugated Partners Group (CPG), a collaborative network of sheet feeders, has donated $150,000 on behalf of Jeffrey Schwarz for posthumous induction into the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation’s (ICPF) Circle of Distinguished Leaders.
Contributions were received from the following CPG facilities: Alliance Sheets, Encorr Sheets, Flutes Hanna, Flutes Zionville, Heartland Sheets, Independence Corrugated, Keystone Sheets, NewCorr, New England Sheets, North Star, Pinnacle Corrugated, SPP Miami, Triumph Sheets, Star Corr, and StarCorr de Mexico.
The Circle of Distinguished Leaders program honors exceptional individuals — leaders whose vision, creativity and energy have moved the corrugated industry forward. Jeff was instrumental in spearheading sheet feeder co-ops and forging relationships between corrugated industry companies. Following a yearlong battle with Glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, Jeff passed away on November 26, 2023.
Jeff’s nomination to ICPF’s Circle of Distinguished Leaders was initiated by the Fiterman family at Liberty Diversified International. His induction will mark the first time two members from the same family have been honored, with his father Jack having joined this prestigious group in 2011.
Industry contributions on behalf of Jeff have led to the most successful Circle of Distinguished Leaders nomination to date. In another sizable donation, Pacific Southwest Container has contributed $50,000 to recognize Jeff’s legacy and long-standing impact on the corrugated packaging industry. Additional pledges and donations in Jeff’s honor have been made by AICC, Amtech Software, Buckeye Corrugated, Central Package & Display, DanHil Containers, Domtar, Fibre Box Association, Fosber America, Great Northern Corporation, Green Bay Packaging, Jim Johnson, Liberty Diversified International, Litho Press, Bob and Debbie McIlvaine, Packaging Express, Jim and Pam Porter, Rick and Mary Van Horne III, Wasatch Container, and Wertheimer Box.
Friends, business colleagues, firms, and organizations can still honor Jeff by donating in his name. Nomination contributions are tax deductible and support the Circle of Distinguished Leaders Program and ICPF’s work to grow the workforce of the corrugated packaging industry. Those making donations to honor Jeff will be recognized during a posthumous induction ceremony at a 2025 AICC meeting, and in a subsequent release to the packaging trade press that will also be provided to the Schwarz family.
Contact Caitlin Salaverria at [email protected] if you would like to join in honoring Jeff by making a tax deductible “nomination donation” to ICPF. ICPF then will forward an invoice with mailing and ACH instructions for your accounting department.
Click here for more information on ICPF’s Circle of Distinguished Leaders and to see who has been honored in the past.