One of the sixteen students in his high school graduating class was his close boyhood friend Carl Yastrzemski, a future Hall of Fame baseball star.

[6][7] At the start of the 1990s, Dow's executive leadership concluded that the company needed to undergo a radical transformation if it were to take advantage of the opportunities and face the challenges being created by the emergence of an integrated global economy.

In 1995 Stavropoulos was tapped by Dow's Board of Directors to become the company's CEO, effective 1 November, and to lead the global makeover of the firm.

[9][10][11] As part of its transformation strategy, Dow divested itself of ventures that were no longer competitive or did not fit well with the company's strengths, e.g., its consumer products operation (DowBrands).

[14][15][16] As CEO, Stavropoulos led the effort to increase and publicize Dow's commitment to environmental protection and workplace safety.

He then worked with Dow's executive leadership team to devise and implement a sequence of actions that put the company back on strong financial footing.

In December 2005, MBF purchased a minor league baseball team (the Devil Rays of Battle Creek, Michigan.

[28] From 2006 to 2007, MBF built a baseball stadium in downtown Midland (the Dow Diamond), which serves as the home field of the Great Lakes Loons.

The couple have two children, Bill and Angela, and six grandchildren, Nina, Samantha, Lily, Kristina, Billy, and Joseph.