October 27, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Regina.

Regina and I met in August, 1989, in my office in Bethesda, Maryland. She walked into the office looking for a job. My habit was to interview anyone, even if I had no openings. The staff knows that so the receptionist called me up front. Regina and I talked in my office and I took notes. I asker her why she was moving to Maryland from New York and she told me that she was moving in order to allow her daughter to attend good schools. In many ways she was not a desirable employee. She attended school in Brooklyn and her speech patterns were terrible, but I am looking for a spark in the eyes and I found that in Regina. She told me that both she and her husband were looking for a job in Maryland. When one of them got a job, both would quit their New York job and move. Then the other would get a job too. I told her that I had no openings at the time. And we shook hands. Three weeks later, one administrative person asked to transfer to an office closer to home so I called Regina and hired her. She gave two weeks notice, rented an apartment and moved. She started working with me on October 9, 1989. Truth be told, she is still working with me. She just mailed my blog for 2020. She prints and binds my blog for me. And every morning she sends me a good morning greeting. If I do not respond, she checks with me later in the day to be sure I am well. She has been a wonderful worker over the years. Even though she was not well educated, she is smart and not afraid to take on difficult tasks. And she worked hard to get better. I wished I had made a video. Regina was at the front desk at 8:00 in the morning. She was answering the phones before the receptionish arrived at 9:00. This occured in the early months of her employment. Peppy, one of my good agents was also an early bird and she was listening Regins answering the phone so Peppy sat down and suggested that Regina should listen to her, Peppy, answer the phone. As Regina wanted to get better, she listened to Peppy. Then Peppy had Regina say exactly what Peppy said, all in the same gracious tone of voice. And Peppy stayed listening to Regina speak exactly as directed. I started laughing and kept laughing as Regina continued to sound just like Peppy on the phone. Never again did Regina sound as if she was from Brooklyn. She answered the phone exactly as Peppy directed. And that is why Regina got so good at her job. She tried to get better. She is a special person to me. And I will be pleased to receive my bound blog.