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Winton Dahlin, 82, retires after 60 years with the same company

Winton Dahlin, 82, retired on Friday — after working 60 years at the same company.

Following a simple celebration lunch of a cheeseburger and fries hosted by his employer, machinery manufacturer Forsberg's Inc. in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, Dahlin hung up his blue apron and went home early.

"Winton was the most dedicated, company-conscious employee we've ever had. About the only thing he didn't do was own the place. Up to his last day, he was productive and sharp," owner Denny Bakke praised his most loyal employee to the Grand Forks Herald.

Dahlin first started working for Forsberg's Inc. on October 14, 1952, as a 22-year-old newlywed. He worked full-time until two years ago, when he scaled back his hours to 20 a week.

Over the course of his 60-year career, Dahlin did almost every job at the shop, from painter to parts manager.

"The work ethic was totally different back then. Some people of his generation were lost when they stopped working," said Loren Holen, Forsberg's general manager.

The hard-worker routinely went above and beyond his assigned duties, arriving at work at 4 a.m. — three hours before the start of his shift — to make coffee for his coworkers and tend to other "self-appointed duties."

The Grand Forks Herald reports that the early bird routinely went to bed at 5 p.m. so he could start his day at 1 a.m.

As Dahlin said his goodbyes, an employee asked the octogenarian about sick days. Dahlin admitted to "some problems," as he "missed a couple of days of work once, I guess."

As for why he continued to work at the same place for so long, Dahlin gave the Grand Forks Herald a simple answer:

"I liked what I was doing, so as long as I was able-bodied and they wanted me around, I figured I'd stay."

While Dahlin's milestone is impressive, Thomas Stoddard still has the world record for longest career in the same company. Stoddard started working at Speakman Company in Delaware in 1928 — and retired 80 years later, in 2008.