"Set for life" is the case no more. The parish is trying to help families figure out how they'll make ends meet when the mill closes down this spring. Its owner, Domtar Corp., announced the closure Dec. 13, although an exact date has not been set. The Canadian company cited a loss of profits and higher costs. The decision wasn't a shock to paper industry observers. "Port Edwards has old machines that are really beyond their lifetime," said Gerry Ring, chair of the paper science department at the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point. "They were old 22 years ago when I first saw them." Even so, the decision to shut down the mill entirely came as a blow to Domtar's 500-plus Port Edwards employees. Among them was David Becker, an industrial electrician at the mill. "We were assuming that there would be more layoffs, but this was a shock," Becker told The Catholic Times, newspaper of the Diocese of La Crosse. Now most of these workers in a town of 2,300 will have to find new jobs.