After 33 years with the Midwestern oven maker, Dave Strand has retired from Wisconsin Oven, East Troy, Wis.

Strand was hired by Wisconsin Oven Corp. as a shop worker in 1986. In 2019, he retired as president and CEO of Thermal Product Solutions, the parent company of Wisconsin Oven. Strand dedicated his career to the continued growth of Wisconsin Oven, and his presence will be missed by employees, customers and community partners.

When Strand took over as president and CEO of Wisconsin Oven in 2005, he sought to develop a culture that embraced his employees and motivated them to “play like champions” every day. As a result, he created Wisconsin Oven’s Work of Champions program and developed a mission statement to inspire and reward employees for going above and beyond.

During his time at Wisconsin Oven, Strand was active in giving back to East Troy and the surrounding communities. As honorary chairman of the United Way of Walworth County, he encouraged local businesses support the 2017 holiday giving campaign, which resulted in more than $15,000 donated. Strand also focused on developing the next generation of talent and promoting careers in manufacturing. He founded an annual scholarship awarded to an East Troy High School graduate going into skilled trades or engineering. He also created the Wisconsin Oven Universal Training Center (WOC-U) in 2018.

The employees of Wisconsin Oven held a retirement party for Strand on June 7 to celebrate his career and contributions to the company.