| 
Meet Bob Shell, a successful international businessman
and powerful state leader who works quietly behind the scenes to improve
the lives of young people in our community. By John H. Houvouras He is the current Vice-Chairman of the Marshall University Board of Governors.
He is a major investor in Huntington’s First Sentry Bank and other
financial institutions across the United States. He is a generous contributor
to countless charities throughout the community. He has been a trusted
advisor to two West Virginia governors and several United States senators
and congressmen. His business interests span from Logan, West Virginia
to Tianjin, China. 
Those in “the know” call him a friend and confidant. They
respect him for a myriad of reasons, including his business savvy, uncanny
vision, dogged determination, devotion to family, dedication to community
and, perhaps most of all, his truly generous and kind-hearted spirit. Meet Bob Shell, one of West Virginia’s most powerful men with a
soft spot for young people in our community. Raised in Logan, young Robert Shell, Jr. was just like any other kid
from the coalfields of West Virginia. The oldest of Robert and Doris Shell’s
three sons, he enjoyed swimming with his younger brothers, Craig and Bernie,
in the Guyandotte River and gave no thought to the fact that he was covered
in coal dust when he emerged from the cool waters. On weekends he would
hop a coal train to downtown Logan – some seven miles from his house
– to catch a movie. At Logan High School, he excelled at both football
and baseball, but injuries during his junior and senior years ended his
athletic career. 
Upon graduating from high school, he enrolled at Marshall University
where he began studying business even though he dreamed of becoming an
astronomer. “I probably would be an astronomer today if I had any penchant
for math,” Shell says with a smile. “But I have fond memories
of my time at Marshall. I made a lot of friends and everyone there, including
my teachers, were all universally nice people. Being from Logan, the Marshall
Artists Series was my first major exposure to culture. It had a profound
impact on my life.” At 18, he married his first wife, Jane Steele. To help make ends meet,
he worked several jobs including a position as a night watchman at Barboursville
State Hospital and a janitor at Novamont Corporation. Ultimately, though,
he chose to leave Marshall and go to work for the family business. Shell
and his wife had three children together – Robby, Todd and Lisa
– but eventually divorced in the 1980s. Shell is proud of his children. Robby and Todd live in Logan and Huntington
with their respective families and run their own manufacturing and service
companies. Lisa is Vice President of Public Relations fortheMontrealAlouettes,Canada’spremier
professional football organization. She splits her time between Montreal
and Palm Beach, where she and her husband own and manage the Colony Hotel. 
In 1968, Robert Shell Sr. was a part owner in two businesses –
Guyan Machinery, founded in 1913, in Chapmanville, W.Va. and Permco, a
fledgling manufacturer of replacement hydraulic pump parts near Cleveland,
Ohio. Both companies serviced the mining industry. Shell Sr., a no-nonsense
businessman, opted to put his son to work at Permco where his business
skills could be honed. Though the company was struggling, Shell was successful in turning things
around. By 1970, “Shell Junior,” as he was known at the company,
was coming into his own. As a result of the company’s rapid success,
he purchased a 25,000 square foot building at a bankruptcy auction. “My father thought I had lost my mind when he heard about the new
building,” Shell says. “The new facility was 10 times larger
that our previous location. I had to explain to him that I had renters
lined up to lease the space we didn’t need. I was looking ahead
and was confident that we would grow into the space.” Shell was right. Under his stewardship Permco continued to flourish.
The company he joined in 1968 had just 12 employees. By 1972 the renters
were gone and the building was filled with 50 workers. His bold move at
Permco would be the first in a long line of business accomplishments. 
In the years that followed, Shell Sr. would divide his time between Permco
and Guyan Machinery. But it would be Shell Jr. and his vision that would
propel the companies to new heights in the 1980s and 1990s. Not satisfied to merely manufacture replacement parts, in 1976 Shell
began producing entire hydraulic pump units. As part of the transition,
he decided to bring in an industry expert to teach a class for all Permco
employees. Rick Olszewski was a man on the rise at Cleveland-based Parker Hannifin,
the world’s largest producer of fluid power components, when he
received a call from Shell. At the time he was one of the company’s
most talented engineers and troubleshooters. In addition to working on
such high-profile projects as nuclear submarines and the design of the
Minuteman Missile, he had literally written the books that Parker Hannifin
used in their renowned hydraulic classes. At Shell’s urging, Olszewski
agreed to teach some classes during his vacation. “I attended all of Rick’s sessions,” Shell recalls.
“In addition to having tremendous technical knowledge, he possessed
an electrifying personality. By the end of the week I said to myself,
‘Whatever it takes, I’ve got to get this guy.’ I knew
we could do great things together.” Ironically, Olszewski was planning to talk to Shell about the future
of Permco when Shell pulled him aside and offered him a job. “The offer intrigued me because I had been working for such a large
corporation,” Olszewski says. “Permco was a small family company
and I liked that. And Bob was an interesting guy. We hit it off from the
start.” The two men, both in their early 30s, made a formidable duo. Shell brought
business acumen and vision to the table while Olszewski kept his eye on
the technical realities of any given project. 
“We would go on sales calls and it was like a tag team,”
Olszewski recalled. “When we were done making our pitch, the client
was blown away.” Shell echoes those insights: “Rick Olszewski and Bob Shell make
a damn near perfect team. My strengths compliment his strengths. I’m
the dreamer and he’s the man who makes it happen.” The two men share a mutual respect that is easily discernable. “In addition to being one hell of a businessman, Bob would literally
give you the shirt off of his back,” Olszewski said. “Once,
I was preparing for a big meeting with a client when I noticed I had a
ketchup stain on my shirt. I didn’t know what to do and asked Bob
if he had a shirt I could borrow. He said, ‘Well Rick, I only have
one clean shirt in my closet and I was planning on wearing it to a meeting
myself. But, if you need it, take it.’ That’s the kind of
guy Bob Shell is.” “Rick Olszewski is probably my favorite person in the whole world,”
says Shell. “When you consider his intellect, creativity and personality,
he’s got it all. I made a smart move the day I hired him.”
Today, Permco’s hydraulic pumps, regarded as some of the finest
in the industry, can be found around the world on mining equipment, construction
equipment, garbage trucks, dump trucks, bulldozers and more. The arrival of Olszewski marked the advent of a new era at Permco. The
company continued to evolve and, in 1982, Shell made his first move overseas.
In a joint venture with an industrial conglomerate from northern Italy,
Permco opened a distributorship in Rotkreuz, Switzerland. The location
would serve as a foray into the European markets where Permco would become
recognized as a brand leader. Permco would later buy out their partners. However, the excitement of the company’s move into Europe would
be tempered with sadness when Shell’s father passed away in 1984.
For Shell, this would be the beginning of a difficult period both personally
and professionally. “When his father died, Bob was cast in the role of family leader,”
says longtime business associate Marshall Reynolds. “He assumed
the role of bread winner for the entire family – not only his wife
and three children, but his mother, brothers, cousins, you name it.” These were trying times for his entire family, including his mother. “There was a point when I could have sold the family business and
made her life comfortable,” Shell says. “Or I could try to
grow the business to new heights. I asked her to make that decision and
she said she would rather see me succeed in business than have a guaranteed
meal ticket. My mother has a keen business sense. She is absolutely devoted
to her sons. She’s been very supportive of me.” Shell began overseeing the family’s interests in both Permco and
Guyan Machinery. He was not only traveling back and forth between Cleveland
and Logan, but grappling with tough business decisions as well. In 1985,
he initiated a leveraged buyout of Guyan Machinery, at the time a 72-year-old
company. “I’ll never forget going to my first board meeting in Logan,”
says Reynolds. “Bob was in the middle of a leverage buyout of the
company and there was a lot of tension in that room. Talk about a boardroom
battle. After the meeting ended I turned to one of the board members and
bet him that Bob would be dead in three months from all the stress he
was under. But I was wrong. Bob is a fighter. He’s one of the most
determined people I know.” Reynolds and Shell first met in 1984 at a Key Banc shares stock holders
meeting in Charleston. Reynolds, who was Chairman of the Board at the
time, recalls that someone stood up in the middle of the meeting and said,
“I’d like to nominate myself for the board.” Says Reynolds: “I remember thinking, ‘Who is this nut?’” The “nut” was Bob Shell. While Shell didn’t get elected to the board that day, he achieved
his goal – he captured Reynolds’ attention. A short time later,
Shell asked Reynolds to join the Board of Directors of Guyan Machinery
and later Permco. In time, Reynolds put Shell on several of his boards
and the two forged a lucrative business partnership. They have invested
in numerous ventures including Broughton Dairy and Portec Rail Products.
They also control significant interests in banks in West Virginia, Ohio,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Florida, California and Washington, D.C. They even
share ownership of a private jet. 
In 1986, Shell faced another leveraged buyout, this time of Permco. While
he managed to survive both wars, he was nearly out of cash. “Those
two buyouts cost a lot of money,” Shell says. “But, I had
control and the companies really took off after that.” With the battle for control of the family businesses from outside interests
now behind him, Shell relocated to Charleston in 1986. He continued to
divide his time between business interests in Logan, Cleveland and Switzerland.
Bob’s brother Bernie also joined the company at this time. “Bernie
has an MBA and is a golfer of some skill,” says Shell. “He
helps me with the high end projects and the industrial social functions.” When Shell wasn’t traveling, he took an active interest in the
community, including serving on the Board of Trustees at the University
of Charleston. It was during this time that he met a promising graduate
student. Lena Ji was a scholar from China nearing the end of her studies
when the two struck up a friendship. As the relationship grew more serious,
Lena learned that she had received a scholarship to a West Coast university
to pursue further graduate studies. Shell recalls feeling conflicted when
he learned of Lena’s good news. “I said to her, ‘I’m getting ready to move to Huntington
and I would like you to come with me. But I understand that this is a
great opportunity. It’s your decision.’ And, for some reason,
she chose me. She enrolled at Marshall University and began working on
her doctorate. “We’ve been together for 20 years now,” Shell says.
“I still can’t believe my good fortune.” In 1989 the couple moved to Huntington. Shell purchased the old Nichols
estate near the Huntington Mall, a 14,000 square foot home on 11 wooded
acres. He also moved the resistor division of Guyan Machinery to Huntington’s
West End. Located in the former Ensign Electric building, the division
employed 80 people and manufactured industrial resistors for the MARTA
mass transit system in Atlanta as well as high profile government contracts
including several Strategic Defense Initiatives (also known as Star Wars.)
He eventually sold the division to British conglomerate Halma Holdings.
Shell then established the corporate headquarters for Guyan International
– the holding company for Guyan Machinery and Permco – in
Huntington as well. “I found that with a fax machine, e-mail and a jet airplane, we
could remain in Huntington and make our home the corporate headquarters,”
he said. Another key reason Shell opted to move to Huntington was the opportunity
to work more closely with Reynolds. 
“One of the main reasons I came to Huntington was to invest with
Marshall Reynolds,” Shell asserts. “And he’s the reason
I’m still in Huntington. We developed a business relationship as
well as a friendship. He has been the most influential person in my life.” Once here, Shell immersed himself in the community. He worked behind
the scenes on numerous boards and charitable organizations. He became
a major contributor to the United Way, the Boys and Girls Club, Marshall
University and more. As his reputation grew among those in “the
know,” he became a powerful friend to numerous politicians in the
state. “Bob has been the advisor and confidant of senators, congressmen,
governors and state legislators,” says Judge Dan O’Hanlon,
a longtime friend and associate. “All of them have sought him out
for his expertise in such diverse areas as business, education and foreign
trade.” Most recently, Shell served as the chairman of the transition team for
Joe Manchin and Bob Wise – the state’s last two Governors. “Bob is just unbelievable,” notes current West Virginia Gov.
Joe Manchin. “He is a doer, he is a go-getter. While he was a great
help to me financially during my campaign for governor, what I admire
most about him is his compassion for others. The work he does on behalf
of children is something very few people know about. I just know the man
has a good heart.” In 1998, Shell traveled to China for his boldest move to date –
the opening of Permco’s new manufacturing factory in Tianjin. Chinese
dignitaries and government officials were on hand to welcome the American
businessman, and 100 jobs, to the Far East. But this was not Shell’s
inaugural visit to the country. He had actually made the first of many
trips to China in 1980 in the wake of the political good will established
by former President Richard Nixon. “I went out of intellectual curiosity,” Shell recalls. “I
recognized that China was going to be significant, but the country had
a long way to go.” “He has great vision,” notes John Hess, Shell’s longtime
accountant in Huntington. “This was old school Communist China and
the barriers of entry into the business environment were tremendous. He
was ahead of most manufacturers in the United States.” Reynolds echoes that assessment when he says, “He’s a pretty
futuristic guy. He saw the future of China 20 years ago.” “When Bob made his move in China, there were limited roads and
infrastructure,” Hess explains. “In addition to those obstacles,
there were cultural nuances that he had to learn. In China, you have to
be careful how you greet and interact with your business associates. Of
course Lena was a tremendous asset to Bob in this area.” Shell adapted quickly to those cultural nuances. He learned the art of
being gracious and humorous without being disrespectful. An example is
the proper etiquette used at dinner. “In China, the honored guest is always served the fish head and
you must eat it or it is considered an insult,” Shell explains.
“You can tell if you are the honored guest because your napkin always
sits higher in the glass than everyone else. Whenever I was the honored
guest, I would always be sure to make some magnanimous toast to our host
and say, ‘Thank you, you’ve done such a great job and made
my trip so pleasant. We have such a good relationship and I know good
things are going to happen. Therefore, I insist that you be my honored
guest.” Since making the move into Asia, Shell has seen a dramatic rise in sales
and profits. Today, Permco, once a small Cleveland-based hydraulic pump
manufacturer, is a brand leader throughout the world. “Our advantage at Permco is our background in repairing hydraulic
pumps,” Shell says. “Before we started building pumps from
scratch, we knew what parts were going bad and why. We conduct a comprehensive
test on every pump that goes out of our factories. At one time, we were
the only company in the world that did that. We focused on quality long
before ‘quality’ was a buzzword in the industry.” That commitment to quality has been rewarded. “Bob is a smart guy,” says Reynolds. “He’s not
an engineer, but he knows about hydraulics and really has a command of
that subject. Permco is an extremely successful company. When you’re
looking at a manufacturer that sees 40 percent growth per year, that is
phenomenal growth.” “Of course Lena has helped me in so many ways,” Shell notes.
“She has saved me enormous time by reviewing documents and deciding
what I needed to know. She has a unique understanding of how to deal with
the Chinese customs. She has been invaluable in helping me build our Chinese
division.” A year after opening the plant in China, Bob and Lena made one of the
most important decisions of their lives when they decided to adopt two
young girls living in a foster home. Danielle and Heather, ages seven
and eight at the time, were sisters when they were welcomed into the Shell
family. Perhaps it was because of their good fortune or commitment to
family that Bob and Lena chose to adopt at this stage in their lives. “Here’s a guy who, at the age of 55, takes on the responsibility
of adopting two girls to give them a shot in life,” says Reynolds.
“I think he understands that the more you give the more you get.
I’m proud to call Bob Shell my friend.” During the fall of 2001, Shell contracted a rare strain of meningitis
and became seriously ill. In fact, there were times when he was near death.
Over the course of a very long year he was either in the hospital or confined
at home. Throughout the course of his illness, Lena was at his side, nursing him
back to health while overseeing the day-to-day operations of the division
in China. “When I became ill, she picked up the load and made the trips to
China on my behalf,” says Shell. “And that was extremely important
because Permco China is approaching 25 percent of our business. Today,
Lena and I work closely together on a daily basis. She is a smart woman,
a constant companion and a wonderful wife.” “From that health scare I think Bob learned that life is fragile,”
Reynolds reflects. “He really changed after that and worked with
a greater sense of urgency. You could see that he wanted to accomplish
something worthwhile not only for himself, but for his community and family
as well.” Those who know Bob Shell best say his work on behalf of young people,
particularly children, is his greatest accomplishment. “Bob Shell is one of the most generous men I know, especially when
it comes to children’s causes,” says O’Hanlon. “He
has given freely of his time and money to make the lives of many children
in this community better.” An example of both his generosity and business savvy came in 1999 at
Kellogg Elementary School in WestHuntington.Shell’sgod-granddaughter
mentioned one day that she loved using the computer at school, but wished
she didn’t have to wait so long because there was only one for the
entire class. Knowing the importance of technology to a child’s
education, Shell sprung into action. He organized a plan to raise $200,000
in private funds through his vast network of business associates. Four
months after first hearing about the problem, Shell, along with then Gov.
Cecil Underwood and a gathering of some very happy students, dedicated
Kellogg’s brand new state-of-the-art computer lab. Named after his
good friend Marshall Reynolds, the lab was equipped with 60 computers,
high-speed Internet access and networking capabilities with teachers at
Marshall University. Shell even had the foresight to hire a computer technician
to work at the school full-time to assist students. He even paid for the
lab to remain open in the summer so students could continue to learn. When the new Spring Valley High School was in need of funds for new band
uniforms, Shell sent in a check for $100,000. While watching public television one evening, he took note of an articulate
young lady from McDowell County who wanted desperately to go to college.
As a result of that show, Shell picked up the phone and made arrangements
to help pay her way through college. Today she is a graduate of West Virginia
University College of Law and is clerking in the State Supreme Court. In recognition for his tireless work on behalf of young people in the
state, Cabell County’s new Juvenile Center was named in his honor
– one of the few public buildings in the state named after someone
who is still living. The Robert Shell Juvenile Center opened in 2005.
Numerous local leaders and state officials were on hand for the dedication. “This center is important to our community,” says Shell.
“Its mission is to intercept these troubled kids while there’s
time to work with them, so they don’t end up another 100 yards up
the hill in the big house.” “The people of Cabell County need to know how fortunate they are
to have somebody with a heart as big as that county,” notes Gov.
Manchin. “He flies under the radar and shuns notoriety. But he’ll
go to whatever lengths it takes to help someone in need, and I don’t
know if people have seen that soft side of Bob Shell.” So why does Shell have such a soft spot for young people? Why does he
support these causes as well as nearly every Little League from Logan
to Cleveland? “I know it may sound clichéd, but the children are our future,”
Shell explains. “I really believe that’s true. I think all
parents feel the need to do a better job than the previous generation
and give their children a fair shake in life. I believe all too often
that children are left behind academically and in other ways simply because
they didn’t have the support they needed. Anything that encourages
the support of children’s activities and growth and education is
really important to all of us in the long run.” Success for Shell has come in many forms. He has two homes – in
Huntington and on Singer Island in Florida. There’s his 75-foot
yacht, private jet and numerous cars. He has luxurious skyboxes at Marshall’s
and WVU’s football stadiums. It’s all a far cry from Logan. His reputation among the power brokers in the state has earned him a
seat on the Marshall University Board of Governors, where he has assumed
the position of Vice-Chairman. In 1999 he was elected to Marshall’s
Business Hall of Fame. For his 60th birthday, O’Hanlon and Reynolds threw Shell a surprise
party at the Radisson Hotel in down town Huntington. There were more than
300 peoplein attendance. So what drives a man to achieve this kindofsuccess? Two things. “First,
I think I was always trying to impress my father,” Shell explains.
“He was a hard man to please and we didn’t have the best relationship.
I was 40 when I finally realized that my dad grew up in a foster home.
I believe the things he found difficult to dolikeshow affection or give
you a pat on the back were born out of that experience. “I think the other thing that motivated mewasthis phenomenon you
see in southern West Virginia, where we’re told all our lives that
we’re notasgood as people from other places. So, we have this negativeself-image.
I believe that was a driving force with me. Ineverfeltthat I measured
up so I always thought I had to do more.” As successful as Shell had become, it took the unexpected death of his
younger brother Craig to put his life in perspective. Craig Shell, who
ran a halfway house for drug addicts and alcoholics in Phoenix, died on
August 3, 2005 at the age of 49. When Bob and Lena flew to Arizona for
the funeral, they were humbled by what they experienced. “We didn’t know what to expect at the funeral,” Shell
recalls. “We thought 50 people would show up. Instead, more than
500 people filled the banquet halls of the hotel where the service was
held. I thought I had an appreciation for what Craig did, but I didn’t.
At least a dozen people came up to me and told me that my brother saved
their life. When I returned to Huntington, I thought about it. And while
I feel I’ve done a lot to help other people, no one has ever walked
up to me and said, ‘You saved my life.’” Rick Olszewski likes to tell a story about Shell that sheds some light
on his friend’s kindness, generosity and sense of humor. “I stopped by to visitBobin Huntington during a sales trip one
year,” Olszewskirecalls. “Wespentsometime together in his
home and when he walked me outside to say good-bye he noticed I had a
small spare tire on my car. ‘What the hell is that?’ he asked.
I explained to him that I had a flat tire and that I only hadanother200
miles to go and the spare would be fine. ‘You aren’t driving
on that,’ he said. ‘Go get inthatMercedes over there.’
Now, you have to understand that this was Bob’s brand new Mercedes.
He had always wanted a convertible Mercedes and finally bought one earlier
in the year. I told him, ‘Bob, I don’t want to take it.”
But he insisted.‘Damnit, you’re the only one I’d give
that car to because I trust that you’ll take care of it.’
It was July and I drove the car to Cleveland with the top down. I had
the car for several weeks before I was due to return it over Labor Day
weekend. “Well, the night before I was set to bring the car back to Huntington
we had a terrible storm and, I kid you not, lightning struck a tree near
my house and it fell on Bob’s Mercedes. Every inch of that car was
covered in dents and scratches. The next day I mustered up the courage
to call him, and when I told him what had happened he started laughing.
‘I wish someone had a camera so I could have seen your face,’
he said. ‘That shot would have been priceless. Don’t worry
about the car, we’ll get her fixed.’” They say that the true measure of a man can be determined by how many
lives he has touched. In Bob Shell’s case, the list is long. Over
the years he has received numerous letters from young people whose lives
he has impacted. Here is just one: Dear Mr. Shell,
I have always wanted to thank you for the profound impact you have made
on my life. I know there is no way you could have known the difference
it has made.Infact, I would be surprised if you remember me. Yet, I think
that very fact is one reason your influencewasso great. For the past severalyearsthe
following quote has been on my desk, ‘The real test of class is
how you treat people who can not possibly do you any good.’ I worked
for you from 1992-1994 at the football stadium. I was the hostess assigned
to your skybox. I didn’t want that job at first because I was sure
I would fail. You see, before I ever walked in I had been told what an
important client you were and I could not make a mistake. I was so nervous!
Then when I walked in and saw how luxurious it was, I was really intimidated.
I had never been around anything like it. I was certain that my clothes
wouldn’t be nice enough or I wouldn’t know the right things
to say to your guests. Then, I met you. You put me at ease. You made me
feel trusted and important. “One day, the Governor stopped by and you took me by the arm and
introduced me. I’ll never forget you telling him that he needed
to meet me because I was going places! My background was very simple.
I had hardly been out of the Tri-State area. Yet there you were introducing
me to community and business leaders and telling them I was special. Well,
I knew then I had a lot to live up to. “I eventually got married and moved away. My husband and I built
successful careers and enjoy a lifestyle I still can’t quite comprehend.
I have traveled all across the United States and a fair amount of Europe.
I’ve been the guest of many influential people yetneverfeel uncomfortablein
such settings. I think you’re the reason. I have my first full-time faculty position at ac ollege and, I swear,
I think the sky’s the limit for me. I try my best to make the lives
of the people around me a little better in whateverwayIcan. Above all,
I try to remember that showing faith in someone can change their life.
Thank you for believing in me.” The letter, written on Dec. 9, 2002, was signed by Christy Lampee. On a typical week night you can find Bob Shell behind the large desk
in his Huntington home, usually on the phone, talking with one of his
managers overseas. Or, he might be reading a letter just like the onewrittenby
Christy Lampee. A night owl by nature, he logs late hoursoutof necessityanda
sincere passion for his work. But there’s more to it than that.
Even today, with all he has accomplished, he is still trying to prove
that he measures up and silence those negative stereotypes about Southern
West Virginians. Unfortunately for Shell, his father never lived to see his son’s
remarkable achievements. But “Shell Junior,” as he was known
in Cleveland, has made peace with the past. “As I matured I realized that my father had a lot of great qualities,”
Shell says. “And I think he would be proud of me today. I stood
on his shoulders and the shoulders of the father before him. And my children
and grandchildren will do the same.” |
