November 5, 2025
The International Corrugated Packaging Foundation (ICPF) posthumously inducted Jeffrey Schwarz as the 29th member of the ICPF Circle of Distinguished Leaders. The induction ceremony took place on Tuesday, October 7, during AICC’s Fall Meeting in Chicago, followed by a dinner and reception honoring Schwarz at Smith & Wollensky.
The program honors exceptional individuals—leaders whose vision, creativity, and energy have moved the corrugated industry forward.
Schwarz started in the industry working for his father Jack’s company, Trey Corrugated, and then moved to startup company Performance Corrugated. In 1998, Jack, Jeff, and Jeff’s brother, John, founded Schwarz Partners. What began as an independent sheet feeder grew to include partner companies in the packaging, paper, transportation, and recycling industries. Jeff was instrumental in spearheading sheet feeder co-ops and forging relationships between corrugated industry companies. Following a yearlong battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, Jeff passed away on November 26, 2023. Jeff’s induction marks the first time two members from the same family have been honored, with his father Jack having joined this prestigious group in 2011. Watch Jeff’s tribute video at youtu.be/ESil3FefPIY or by scanning the QR code on this page.
Industry contributions on behalf of Jeff led to the most successful Circle of Distinguished Leaders nomination to date. The Corrugated Partners Group (CPG), a collaborative network of sheet feeders, donated $150,000 on behalf of Jeff for his posthumous induction. Contributions were received from the following CPG facilities: Alliance Sheets, Encorr Sheets, Flutes Hanna, Flutes Zionville, Heartland Sheets, Independence Corrugated, Keystone Sheets, NewCorr, New England Sheets, North Star, Pinnacle Corrugated, SPP Miami, Triumph Sheets, Star Corr, and StarCorr de México.
In another sizable donation, Pacific Southwest Container contributed $50,000 to recognize Jeff’s legacy and longstanding impact on the corrugated industry. ICPF also thanks the following companies and individuals who made donations in Jeff’s name to support ICPF programs and initiatives: AICC, American Box Co., Amtech Software, Atlas Container, Bay Cities, Buckeye Corrugated Inc., BW Papersystems, Central Package & Display, DanHil Containers, Domtar, Equipment Finance Corp., Fibre Box Association, Fosber America, Great Northern Corp., Green Bay Packaging, Jamestown Container Cos., Jim Johnson, Peggy Lacy, Liberty Diversified International, Litho Press, Bob and Debbie McIlvaine, Packaging Express, Jim and Pam Porter, Rick and Mary Van Horne III, Wasatch Container, Welch Packaging, and Wertheimer Box.
To learn more about the Circle of Distinguished Leaders program, past and future nominees from the corrugated packaging industry, and program donation opportunities, visit ICPF’s website or click the QR code on this page.
Caitlin Salaverria is president of International Corrugated Packaging Foundation.
