Marilyn Labkon

Above Labkon's desk hangs a faded color photo of her grandmother Rose Rosenmutter, a Polish immigrant and the company's matriarch. Labkon's grandfather, Meyer Rosenmutter, died in 1920 at age 37, "leaving Rose with seven young children, Murphy the horse and a scrap peddler's wagon," Labkon said. "She kept her family fed with that wagon and a small junk shop, which stood near our present location." Today General Iron, a few hundred yards from homes that cost $1 million or more, recycles 1,500 to 2,000 tons of scrap metal--the equivalent of about 1,300 Volkswagen Beetles--every day. Her father, Nathan Rosenmutter, who had a 6th-grade education, had taken his mother's business and molded it into a 4.5-acre scrap yard recycling more than 150,000 tons of metal a year. In 1993 Rosenmutter, in his 80s and in failing health, faced heightened competition and encroaching development. . She had worked as a substitute teacher while raising her family. Rosenmutter died in 2002. Eleven years later Labkon remains, running the business with her two sons. Adam Labkon oversees operations; Howard Labkon runs human resources, information technology and sales.