Greensboro, N.C. — Jack Worsham, who founded several plastics companies including Southern Plastics Engineering Corp., died June 19 at age 94.
Worsham founded Southern Plastics Engineering in 1955, making it one of the first custom injection molders in North Carolina.
He was born in Ruffin, N.C., in 1926. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces when he turned 18 in 1944, where he rose to the rank of sergeant. After discharge he earned undergraduate and law degrees from the University of North Carolina. He practiced law for several years in Reidsville, N.C., before he became interested in the plastics industry.
In addition to Southern Plastics Engineering, his entrepreneurial spirit also led him to start several other businesses including Spray Plating Systems, Electro-Shield, Chemical Systems, Worsham Realty, Intertech Corp. and, at 89 years old, 21st Century Products Inc.
"Jack took great joy in his work, was very creative and determined, receiving numerous patents on various products. He took great satisfaction in providing work for hundreds of people through the years, and he himself continued to work until his final days," the company said in a statement.
He was preceded in death by Mary, his wife of 51 years. He is survived by four children, nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Services were held June 28 in Greensboro.