ASHEVILLE, N.C. — John Davis is on his lunch break from his new job.

What You Need To Know

  • March 6 marked one year since a big change was announced in western North Carolina 

  • The Pactiv Evergreen paper mill's closure left more than 1,000 employees jobless and figuring out what to do next  

  • We caught up with a former employee one year later to see how his life has changed 

He was one of more than 1,000 paper mill workers who lost their jobs last year when Pactiv Evergreen closed in Canton. Although transitions can be frustrating, he tries to keep perspective.

“I’m not the only one, so I try to keep that in mind too moving forward. That there’s other people going through the same thing,” Davis said.  

The last time we spoke to Davis was in March 2023 at a job fair. Things were uncertain at the time, but he was offered a job at Norafin Americas, which manufactures fabrics. He started four days after his job at the mill ended.   

“I did that because I thought I would feel better moving forward, if I didn’t take a break from work. I wanted to continue working, just for my own state of mind,” Davis said.  

But he wasn't without fear. After all, he was starting a new job in his 50s, after working at the same job for 24 years.   

“In this role where there’s so many similarities, I think that helped me do that. Within a couple of months, I was pretty much running it. I think that was a one of the bonuses of coming here,” Davis said.  

He says he may not be able to retire as soon as he planned, but his family is figuring out what’s next.   

The mayor of Canton says he knew this day was coming, but today brings up mixed emotions.

“The words I keep coming back to, and I've struggled with finding the right words on a day like today, is that we’re still here,” Zeb Smathers said. 

As for the town of Canton, Smathers says there are still challenges ahead.  

“None of us can think for a second that these families, this community are not still hurting, and I still think there are challenging days ahead. I think we know sometimes the economic hurt takes a while to get to your shore,” he said. 

The mill closed for good in June. Smathers says Pactiv Evergreen will treat the wastewater at the plant until 2025, but the future for the site and Canton is still unfolding.   

“I believe enough in this place, these people, that there is nothing I think we can’t do. We’re going to do it in a way that honors our past and really brings in new ideas and new people, but doesn’t change who we are. We’re proud to be a mill town, even if the mill is no longer here,” Smathers said.  

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