Silhouettes of Service #2: Jan Cragun

Perhaps it’s been a few weeks, but hopefully you remember our first tribute to one of many people who give outstanding service and aren’t afraid to just be great. If you don’t remember, or are completely new to such a novel idea, feel free to click on this. You also might remember that I asked for you to pay a little more attention to those fantastic people around you and then to honor them by sending in a short recap of your experience. Thanks for responding! Here is an experience recorded by Dillon Boss honoring none other than . . .

Jan Cragun

Says Dillon:

“Being a college student can be a pretty wild ride, and sometimes we need a helping hand to keep ourselves grounded, right? Well finding myself in one of those situations, today I met someone that really kept my world spinning, if you know what I mean. I went to a new college that I’ll be attending with hopes of basically building a new student life from scratch (after living abroad for a few years), and this lady made it all possible. Her name is Jan Cragun, and she is an academic advisor that helped me get excited about something that I wasn’t necessarily excited about…going to a different school, in a whole new place and what not. Her extensive knowledge, suggestions, and her pleasant and complimentary nature made me realize that there still are people out there that, despite a seemingly difficult situation, are there to help you with a smile on their face. One of the things that impresses me most about people is how they listen and relate, and Jan was all ears. She caught my drift, figured out what I needed and worked magic to make the whole thing work. Now, after not even an hour with this lady, I have a great schedule lined up for the next academic year, some great opportunities to pursue, and I’m really excited about it. Many of us rambunctious college kids just don’t realize how much those advisors can do for us! I mean…this is about the rest of our lives here…and now, thanks to a nice woman who was just “doing her job,” I have a better idea for mine. Thanks a lot Jan for being awesome and making me feel like a special guest!”

There are a lot of people out there who just “do their job,” but who’s to say that just “doing your job” can’t include a warm smile, a friendly conversation, and a feeling that you have given someone else more confidence, clarity, and courage to face the future? Thanks, Jan!

Fantastic people are all around us, and we’d love to hear about them. If you would like to share the experience you have the next time you meet someone who goes above and beyond, then follow this link for submission details.

Like a Good Neighbor . . .

. . . can you finish the phrase?

Of course you can. It’s a jingle we have all heard since our dear Barry Manilow committed that music to paper in 1971. But have you ever stopped to think about what it’s really trying to say? “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.” What in the world is a good neighbor? Is it someone who always supports your amateur bakery by sacrificing a cup of sugar? Is it someone who watches your pets while you are away? Is it someone you can chat with over the hedge about your personal life while shirking your landscaping duties?

Yes, yes, and yes . . . but I believe there is much more to it. We are surrounded by literal neighbors–individuals in front, in back, and on every side of us–but how many times in elementary school did the teacher ask you to work with your “neighbor“? Who hasn’t been greeted by the kindly old gentlemen giving you a firm handshake and with a thundering “Howdy neighbor!” welcomes you to the town? And even Mr. Rogers wanted the world-wide television audience to be his neighbor; so what does it mean to be a neighbor? I would wager that I’m not the only one who has pondered this question. In fact, I know I’m not the only one who has pondered this question. Nearly 2,000 years ago a cunning lawyer asked the Master the same question. The answer that came is one of the most well-known moral stories around the globe:

Silhouettes of Service #1: Madeline Christensen

Ok, Reader, listen up. I want you to take a minute and rack your brain for me. Will you do that? Aw, thanks. What I want you to do is think of those times in your life where you have been greeted, helped, or otherwise rubbed shoulders with someone who gave you outstanding service. You know, those moments that leave you thinking, “Wow. This person is awesome. He just made my day. I am so happy right now. I want to tweet about this person. I just might take the time to get on my computer and actually fill out an online review because this service was so great.” You notice that these people pop up anywhere and everywhere–from waitresses to ticket takers to your car’s mechanic to your grandma’s cleaning lady–but you also notice that they come few and far between.

In my humble little mind I compare these people to silhouettes–visible to you, but void of detail and unrecognizable to society. You come, they greet, you eat, they serve, you leave, they disappear. They get no national recognition, and all too often they don’t even get recognition from you; and yet you leave the experience feeling happier and ready to conquer the world, just because someone was willing to care about you for a brief period of time. They make an impact on you, so why not make an impact on them?

This is the first of what I hope to be a long string of virtual high-fives to these awesome people. So without further ado, let me introduce to you just such person:

Madeline Christensen

So this is what happened. I was at the doctor’s office a few weeks ago and they needed a blood sample. Normally they take me to the back room and poke my finger and all is good and dandy. Well, this time they inform me that, due to some sketchy business practices, they no longer deal with the manufacturer who supplies those finger-poking, blood-taking instruments of torture, and therefore I need to go down the street to a health-care outlet and actually get my blood drawn. Not only do I lose the convenience of taking 10 steps, sitting down for 10 seconds, and leaving, but now I have to sacrifice my forearm while looking on as the only thing keeping me alive flows from my body and into a glass bottle. 

*Shudder*

I make the trek down the street and walk into a room which fulfills all of your wildest interior design dreams (really, I mean your wildest dreams: no windows, poorly lit, and a little t.v. sitting in the corner playing a Disney film). My enjoyment meter is about as lively as the off-white walls around me. BUT THEN . . . I’m greeted. Not by a DMV employee of the month, but by the most peppy and pleasant person who ever did take blood. Madeline was so kind and cheerful, and I don’t think the smile left her face the whole time I was there. We chatted, made small talk, she took my blood, and it was all over! What impressed me the most, however, was the time she took to just focus on me. I’m sure it had been a long day of sample after sample, but that didn’t stop her from treating me like I was the only patient to have come in. Civility and character at its finest, and it certainly did not go unnoticed.

Thanks, Madeline, for being awesome. You helped save my quickly deteriorating day and you bolstered my enjoyment meter back up to a healthy neon yellow. Proof that you don’t need to look like this in order to take blood:

Fantastic people are all around us, and we’d love to hear about them. If you would like to share the experience you have the next time you meet someone who goes above and beyond, then follow this link for submission details.

Ever Wanted to Dine with Jefferson?

I love the Fourth of July. It’s quickly becoming one of my favorite holidays. As it approaches every year, I’m filled with the same memories of barbecue, watermelon, fireworks, hot sun, History Channel specials, and of playing ridiculously long parades as part of a marching band. (I usually try to forget that last memory.) Needless to say I love the Fourth. I love how we celebrate. I love what it represents. Most of all, though, I love who it represents.

So let’s be honest here, the real heroes of the Fourth of July are, in my opinion, the Founding Fathers. I cannot think of another collective group of men with such courage, honesty, selflessness, and character as those who laid the foundation on which this country rests. *DISCLAIMER TIME* The current trend with historians is to find any and every fault in our great national heroes. YES, they weren’t perfect people. Why? Because they were humans! Humans make mistakes (don’t mean to burst your bubble). Did they make poor choices both in public and in private? YES. Did they ever profess to be anything other than human? NO. They were, however, greater than perhaps any of you or I will ever be, so I think that we ought to give them the respect they deserve. Let haters hate, and let naggers nag, but the purpose of this blog is to highlight the men and women who do great things as a result of the values they live, and these men most certainly qualify.