Renee Ann Conrad Cieslikowski, 70, of Lake Wylie, South Carolina, passed away peacefully this October in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her husband, Mark, by her side. Many Walls & Ceilings readers knew her through her lengthy tenure at National Gypsum as its marketing manager before her retirement several years ago.

Renee and Mark moved to Charlotte in 1978 as her employer, National Gypsum, relocated its headquarters from Buffalo, New York. From senior stenographer to creative and marketing director of the company, she excelled in managing the production of technical and marketing literature, advertising and pulling together the company’s first consumer-facing campaign, the PURPLE family of products. Her diligence and focus on client relationships garnered her projects numerous advertising awards, and she received the 2013 President’s Excellence Award at National Gypsum. One of her proudest accomplishments was completing her college education and receiving her BS degree in business from Pfeiffer University.

Together with their dear friends Brian and Linda Rich, Renee and Mark formed the Q2U BBQ team. They later opened a restaurant in Lake Wylie known for its award-winning BBQ, catering and community involvement. This BBQ was shared with W&C and many drywall subcontractors in 2012, when National Gypsum held a plant tour and contractor roundtable at the company’s facility in Mt. Holly, North Carolina (see W&C’s cover article “A Dialogue in Process” from June 2012).

W&C considered Renee a great friend and a hard worker with a great personality, always willing to help answer questions, provide editorial assistance and partner with the magazine on special projects. We as a team are saddened to hear of her death.