DOWAGIAC — Containing emotions during a moment of celebration can be difficult.

At least it was for the owners of Krook Container, Inc. as they celebrated their 40-year anniversary in the business.

The company has been serving southwest Michigan as a broker and distributer of new, used and reconditioned steel, plastic and fiber drums and barrels. The company also sells salvage drums.

Krook Container Company Inc., 58300 Park Place, Dowagiac, was founded in 1979 by Arlen and Doris Krook. Arlen had been selling clothing. He visited his friend, who worked for Auto Can, a manufacturing company that made pushrods for break cylinders for cars. His friend was checking the diameter and throwing things from one barrel to another. Krook had also seen the barrels in Elkhart as well, and found out the barrels were transported in the back of a station wagon.

“I knew the clothing corporation had barrels,” Krook said. “I added two and two together and started bringing barrels in the back of my vehicle. I started renting U-Haul trucks, and that’s how it started.”

Krook said there were some years when things were slim pickings, but the company has survived.

In 2006, Angie Ernzen and her husband, Steve bought the company from her parents and slightly changed the company’s name to Krook Container, Inc.

“I actually went to work for the school to help pay for things since we were purchasing the business,” Angie said. “I just left there last year to work here full-time.”

Steve, who has an electrical engineering degree from Western Michigan University, was having a hard time finding a job in the 1980s. Steve was working for Krook Container, and eventually, the couple decided to move to Dowagiac.

“My parents got to the point in their life where they were traveling, and we would take care of everything,” Angie said. “In 2006, we finally bit the bullet and kept the name the same.”

Throughout the years, the company has changed the business it does to reflect industry trends. Today, most of the company’s warehouse has cardboard drums.

“There’s been times where we’ve done tons of business in the plastics and tons in the steel, and now a lot of it is the cardboard drums,” Steve said. “Industry has changed a lot. When we were in the plastic and steel drums, this whole area was all fruit packers. That’s where we used to get all the steel and plastic.”

Now, the company has focused on the fiber market and keeps local customers stocked with barrels in South Bend and some areas of Detroit.

“A lot of it goes towards recycling to clean up the asbestos in downtown [Detroit],” Arlen said. “We don’t go much out of state anymore, we’ve found enough business here in state.”

Krook Container has contained many family memories as siblings, the couple’s kids, cousins, nieces, nephews and Steve’s father have all at some point worked for the company.

This past Saturday, the company hosted a 40-year celebration which attracted over 100 attendees. Arlen, the original founder, was grateful to be in attendance after making the trip to Dowagiac from Arizona.

“[Angie and Steve] have done a great job since they took it over,” Arlen said.  “They work their hearts out too.”