GREEN BAY – Seventy-five years ago, Kent Vorpahl – Vorpahl Fire & Safety’s second-generation owner – said his father, Wayne, turned a simple conversation with a friend into a business – one that still protects companies across Wisconsin and the U.P. today.
“Back in 1951, my father was talking with a friend in Madison who had just gotten into the fire extinguisher and inspection business,” Kent said. “Back then, it was in the infancy of people even thinking about having fire extinguishers on premises, so it was a fairly new market.”
Kent said his dad – who he describes as “somewhat of a salesman and entrepreneur” – decided he would give it a try…