This is a bittersweet article to write as she retires, about an individual known to us for a lifetime and an instrumental person in the first thirty-year historical journey of Vantage Plastics. Cheryl (Robinson) Goin has been an account manager primarily focused on serving General Motors since the inception of Vantage Plastics. She has chosen to retire as of July 1, 2026. She grew up in the small town of Coleman, Michigan within a mile from where the founders of Vantage Plastics also grew up.
Cheryl has been married to her husband, Lance, for 45 years. Together they share son Tyler, daughter Kelsey, daughter-in-law Marissa and grandson, George.
Cheryl’s grandfather was Fred Robinson, a pioneer in the plastics thermoforming industry and the founder of Robinson Industries which was recently purchased by Orbis. He had worked at Dow Chemical Company prior to founding Robinson Industries and based on Dow’s Styrofoam invention, became the first fabricator of Styrofoam in the USA in1947. In the early days of the business, he worked with other inventors in the mid Michigan area and was instrumental in developing rotary thermoforming machines. There is a thermoforming museum located in the Beaverton Michigan Activity Center that pays tribute to Fred and Ardis Robinson and the other inventors along with a historical account of the early development of the thermoforming industry.
At age fourteen Cheryl began working at Robinson Industries during High School summer breaks and continued to do so during college. Upon graduating from high school Cheryl entered the Michigan State University School of Packaging as it was a logical choice given her background at Robinson Industries. She graduated with a degree in packaging in 1978 with high honors. During her senior year she also received the special honor of being named one of MSU’s twenty-five outstanding seniors.
After graduation she took a packaging engineering position with IBM and moved to Boulder, Colorado where she met her husband and eventually moved into sales for IBM in Rochester, New York. After the birth of her son she moved back to Michigan to be closer to family and took a sales position at Robinson Industries in 1988 where she continued until joining Vantage Plastics at its founding in 1996.
Reflecting on her career with Vantage Plastics Cheryl said, “I built a practice from scratch and over my thirty years built great relationships with wonderful colleagues and customers. At Vantage I liked the winning team, the family atmosphere, the “can do attitude”, the innovation, problem-solving approach, trustworthiness of the company, and that customers know they can count on us.”
Regarding a stated company value, she says, “All actions with integrity” is more than just a slogan here.”
Some career highlights include helping to earn the 2023 General Motors Supplier of the Year Award and participating in a few trade missions and shows in conjunction with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Automation Alley including trips to Mexico and Israel.
Outside of her career Cheryl has always been a person with a great deal of energy leading to multiple interests and pursuits. She has certainly been an avid reader and conversationalist. She often refers to a book she has read that relates to conversations she is engaged in. During her fifties she decided to take acoustic guitar lessons. At her sixtieth birthday party she had her teacher play for the party and joined him for a couple songs with her guitar for the guests. She is also an avid cook and enjoys home entertaining and being the family chef for holiday gatherings.
Cheryl has also been a world traveler with a bold approach to adventure while in a new territory. She researches the areas she is visiting and takes full advantage of her time there to take in as much as possible. She especially values the connections made internationally and believes travel contributes to cross cultural understanding. In addition to the trade missions to Mexico and Israel she has traveled to South America, Europe, Egypt, Russia, and the Philippines. She enjoys snow skiing, water skiing, and scuba diving, most recently while in the Philippines. She has also traveled extensively within the United States and made an Alaska cruise her first retirement excursion.
One unique experience Cheryl shared involved getting to ride on the Goodyear blimp. Her husband owned an auto parts store and won a ride as a reward for outstanding sales. So, she, Lance, and both of their kids got an hour-long ride on the blimp over the Detroit River and Lake Erie. She said they questioned the pilot about why he changed altitude so much and his interesting response was that he really didn’t have that much control over its direction except to go up and down!
We want to conclude by saying thanks to Cheryl for her many years of service and dedication. She has been a consummate professional throughout her career, and we wish her the best in her retirement. We know she will continue to pursue many areas of interest.
One of the greatest privileges of working together is taking the time to learn the stories that have shaped one another's lives. Every member of the Vantage Plastics Family of Companies brings unique experiences, relationships, and perspectives that strengthen our organization. Cheryl has exemplified those qualities through her creativity, humility, dedication, and genuine appreciation for people for over thirty years as an account manager with The Vantage Plastics Family of Companies. We are grateful she chose a career with the Vantage family, and through her work and the person she is, she helped fulfill our mission of—Forming Better Lives, Forming Solutions, and Forming Sustainable Futures. We suspect she will continue this throughout her retirement.