Friday was a special day for Gramps. He arose early, already dressed at 5 AM, anticipating this long-awaited trip to his old job, the job he loved at the New York City Department of Sanitation.
Flashback….
He was appointed in 1953 to the job as a probationary employee, thankful that his time at the A&P was finally done. He spent 16 years behind the truck, coming home each night with a funny story about something that happened during the day. This helped him mark time until he could retire.
Then, in October, 1969, a teletype came down from headquarters on Worth Street which said that on November 3, the day before Election Day, he was to be promoted to Assistant Foreman. All of a sudden, any thought to retire was gone. His whole life changed. Forever.
The 1970s saw more change in Gramps life: promotion to Foreman and then District Super. He loved his job more than any man could love a job. He felt that each day was a challenge in a good way. He felt he could make a difference.
And did.
His main question was "why are you doing it (whatever "it" was) this way?" If a reasonable answer wasn't forthcoming or worse, if the answer was, "because we always did it this way", he would look to see if there was a better way to do "it". Then, if a better way wasn't found, at least he was able to say the current way was the best way.
He was always pulled out of his normal responsibilities to manage a section, or a garage or a district in order to help his supervisors at the borough level make the job better for all those who worked in the Department throughout the City. He was creative and looked outside the box for answers.
During this time, he was the Borough of Brooklyn's Snow Super, which was virtually a year-round job. He developed some of the systems and programs which are still used today for snow removal.
He was promoted in 1984 to Deputy Chief, which was his final step before officially retiring in 1987. He continued to make inroads in procedures and practices which have not been changed because they worked so well.
Fast forward to Friday.
He got into the car unsure if the trip would be worth it all; the time gone by, the anticipation to see the job again, the reception he would receive. He headed toward Brooklyn, his old stomping grounds, the place where he made his mark. But traffic was unbearable, coming to a standstill. Finally, he decided it wasn't worth the trouble. So, disappointed, he headed back.
But then, it was decided to go to a garage closer to home, in Queens. When he got there, one of the guys traveling with him went into the garage to see if a visit were possible. Five minutes passed. Then ten.
Suddenly, his traveling companion came out, escorting the Garage Foreman. Mr V came over to Gramps' side of the car and spent several minutes thanking him for all he did for the Department, and for the men and women who came after him. Gramps was so elated and his bright blue, Irish eyes were smiling wide for the kind words he heard. And the smile on his face was just was wide.
He spoke with the Foreman for a bit, reminiscing, and sharing stories about people they both knew. Finally, Foreman V had to get back and told Gramps to go home, enjoy his retirement, and that he left the Department in good hands.
Judging by the smile still on his face, Gramps knows that this is a truth. He finished, finally, his adventure, his trip, certainly not disappointed, but rather, comfortable that his journey ended, as it started, thankful that in the end, he knew he made a difference.
And I can assure you, he truly has.
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