“Stretch“ is Simantel‘s employee-to-employee recognition award. Each month, the award is passed to the employee who did something truly amazing – or “stretched” beyond his or her everyday tasks. If honored with “Stretch,” the recipient gets to add something unique to represent his or her personality. The award-winner also has the honor of passing him along to the next person that is most deserving.
This month, Production Manager, Shari Pritchard, passed the award onto Account Coordinator, Liz Walther, and stated, “I just really respect her work.” Shari added a clay alpaca pin to Stretch, representative of her love for alpacas and pottery! Past winners have included: Sr. Art Director Laura Baumgardner (who added the chicken-head), Designer Dan Davis (who added the “bling”), and Project Management Director Jan Curley (who added the chaps)!
Left to right: Sheri Kelley, Liz Walther, Lori Johnson, Matt Williams and Maggie Whalen celebrate May birthdays and anniversaries
Simantel employees will use any excuse to get together in the cafe. Aside from our annual drink, soup, chili contests and occasional happy hour we also get together every month to celebrate birthdays and work anniversaries.
Principal Susie Ketterer puts her CPR skills to the test
At a past Red Cross board meeting, Simantel Principal, Susie Ketterer, demonstrated her knowledge of CPR on Jim Nowlan. While Susie was busy brining Jim back to life, another board member snapped this picture. Simantel now houses a defibrillator, and several employees are trained to use the device as well as conduct CPR. Simantel is in safe hands in the event of an emergency!
The weather is getting warmer; the days are getting longer; and the sound of rumbling bikes is in the air. It must be summertime in Central Illinois! During the work week, Simantel Project Director, Jan Curley, takes her business seriously, monitoring all projects moving through the agency. Come Friday afternoon, however, she lets her hair down and trades in the earrings, high-heels, and McDonald’s iced tea for leather chaps, sun glasses, and a bandana. You will not find her at her desk, but on the open-roads in her 2009 Harley-Davidson softail. On May 15th, Jan will help fight breast cancer by participating in the 2010 Ride for the Cure. Look for Jan at a stoplight near you!
It’s now been a full year since the Simantel crew moved out of “The Sweatshop”, our temporary offices in the Illinois Antique Center, and into our new and improved digs at 321 Water. There are fond memories of those turbulent days. Fond because they are far in the past.
The picture below is of Executive Creative Director Maggie Whalen’s Sweatshop office. The umbrella was a permanent fixture, protecting her from a constant drizzle of plaster and mouse turds that fell from the floor above.
