Brothers, Don and Paul Bothum, who have since passed away, incorporated LeRoy Products in 1956.

There are three LeRoy Products Plants in LeRoy. Plant Number One makes underwater cameras for fishing and electronic fish finders. The company does not market their products directly to consumers but they are contracted by other businesses to sell their goods.

The company is doing well business wise according to Larry Porter, the general manager. The company makes equipment for Cabela's, Fleet Farm, and other businesses. They also make a products for Honeywell, which are dampers for commercial heating.

Plant Number Two produces control units for Blue Earth Industries and they are used in commercial hog units.

Plant number three makes circuit board assemblies that are used in both plants and for individual customers. About 50 employees work for LeRoy Products and employee turnover is low.

LeRoy Products chief financial advisor is Elaine Mills. She is a problem solver as far as safety in the plants and she takes care of the accounting end of the business. She is active in lending a hand in many organizations in LeRoy.

Mills grew up in Rose Creek. Her husband, Mike, is a diesel mechanic in LeRoy. They have five children: Josh, 24, Anna, 22, Michele, 20, Kim, 19, and Becca, 14. Mills stayed at home caring for her children when they were young and she did accounting for a few clients. Through her heavy involvement with volunteer work and her love of numbers, she seems suited for her position at LeRoy Products.

She has been on the financial board, parish council and an officer in the Altar Society at St. Patrick's Catholic Church. As her children grew, she taught religious education for elementary and high school students. Besides church, Mills is involved with activities at the public school.

"This year I am the social chairman of the LeRoy/Ostrander senior post-prom committee. I don't stay all night as I have a child attending. We have a rule that if you have a child at the prom, the parent doesn't stay as a chaperone. This is a night that the child can be him or herself without a parent looking over them," Mills said.

Right now she is in the process of getting the funding for the post-prom activities and donations. The community has been very supportive of this effort in the past. At the school, she is involved with the Family Career Community Leaders of America. She will be working the concession stand at the Regional Competition that will be held in LeRoy in February. Volunteering for Church, school, and after-prom activities would be enough for the average person.

But Elaine Mills is no average person. She is also a 4-H leader with the LeRoy Wide Awake Club.

"One year I did the 4-H fashion reviews at the Crane Pavilion. Every year we do a community clean up and paint signs. Christmas time we go to Wild Wind and to the Riverside Housing Units. I like to do volunteer work where I am doing something with our youth," Mills said.

Mill's husband tells her that she can never say no to helping out. But she sees that what she does as far as the groups she is involved in really does make a difference.

"When you tell a kid that they can succeed and they have done a good job, that helps them. You really get to know the people in the community when you do something that needs to be done. Anyway I can support youth, I jump right in," Mills said.

Sheila Donnelly can be reached at 434-2233 or by e-mail at :mailto:newsroom@austindailyherald.com