2014 Employees of the Month

November 2014

Cathy Huddleston - Accounting Technician I, Administrative Services Department/Finance

Awarded Employee of the Month in recognition and appreciation for providing excellent customer service and helpful assistance to other divisions.
When the customer service division was short staffed earlier this year, Cathy Huddleston regularly helped out by waiting on customers, providing great customer service and assistance to the division. Cathy's willingness and ability to help out in another division is an excellent example of how the organization benefits from cross-training and teamwork.

James Huckabee - Solid Waste Supervisor, General Services Department/Solid Waste

Awarded Employee of the Month in recognition and appreciation for assistance with the Lean Six Sigma Garage Clean Up Project.
James Huckabee was very instrumental in the success of the massive clean up project that was completed earlier this year. He helped with the clean up and also serviced the air lines for the oil containers which resulted in more efficient operation of the oil containers. James also regularly assists the garage staff by repairing equipment for the solid waste division which helps the garage in their workload and decreases equipment downtime.

September 2014

Randy Chapman - Equipment Operator II, Public Services Department/Utilities

Awarded Employee of the Month in appreciation for hard work, dependability and dedication to the City of Gainesville and its citizens.
Randy is a reliable and dependable employee and goes above and beyond his job duties to assist his coworkers and other departments. He is an equipment operator for the Public Services Department but will fill in for the crew leader role for the department on-call schedule so that the crew leaders do not have to work consecutive weekends. Randy also assisted the Police Department on the project of installing security cameras throughout the City.

Michael Young - Police Officer, Police Department

Awarded Employee of the Month in appreciation for hard work and dedication as a canine officer for the City of Gainesville Police Department and in recognition of outstanding achievement.
Officer Michael Young and Canine partner, Sita, attended a five-day training in Wichita Falls, Texas earlier this year representing the Gainesville Police Department in the United States Police Canine Association, Region 25 Narcotic Detector Dog and Patrol Dog I and II Seminar Certification training. Officer Young and Sita competed against 29 canines from 19 different departments throughout the region and finished in first place for patrol work and re-certified in narcotics detection and tracking. Officer Young has shown great passion and dedication in his work and performance as a canine officer.

June 2014

Heather Neighbors - Communications Operator, Police Department

Awarded Employee of the Month in recognition and appreciation for the outstanding public service.
On April 4, 2014, Communications Operator Heather Neighbors calmly and professionally handled incoming calls and dispatching for multiple incidents that occurred simultaneously, one of which was a downed utility pole caused by a major accident which resulted in a moderate power failure in a portion of the City, and in turn activated other incidents requiring dispatch services.
Fire Department personnel expressed praise for the dispatch team and in particular Health Neighbors for her calmness and professionalism during these incidents.

May 2014

Ruth LaSalle - Municipal Court Administrator, Municipal Court

Awarded Employee of the Month in recognition and appreciation for her dedication to the City of Gainesville and the Gainesville Municipal Court.
When the Municipal Court Administrator retired and the other Court Clerk resigned, Ruth stepped up by taking on additional duties and working diligently to keep the daily work current, meeting reporting requirements and keeping the schedule of the Court flowing. She did this on her own initiative and with a positive attitude despite the stressful situation of being extremely short staffed.
Ruth has been very instrumental in the selection and training of new Court personnel. She has set an excellent example for the new staff members and continues to provide excellent customer service.

April 2014

Thomas Fogwell - Equipment Operator II, Recreation Development-Golf Course

Awarded Employee of the Month in recognition and appreciation for his dedication to the City of Gainesville and the Municipal Golf Course.
Tom’s maintenance experience, outstanding mechanical skills and innovative fabricating skills have been of great value to the City. His ability to perform equipment maintenance and repairs on site improves the efficiency of the golf course by saving the City money and reducing equipment down time that results from using outside repair services. His knowledge and experience in turf grass have been a tremendous factor in the recovery of the golf course.
In addition, Tom’s positive attitude, excellent dependability, professionalism and willingness to go the extra mile to meet the demands of the golf course set an excellent example for other employees and maintains the high level of standards of the City.

February 2014

Hodge Cherry - Senior Zoo Keeper, Recreation Development-Frank Buck Zoo

Awarded Employee of the Month in recognition and appreciation for his dedication to the City of Gainesville and the Frank Buck Zoo.
Hodge Cherry, newly appointed Senior Zoo Keeper, without question, stepped up to help his fellow employees and zoo animals during the cold and ice early in December. Hodge volunteered to stay in a hotel near the zoo so he would be able to walk to work if he was needed. He assisted other zoo staff when their vehicles were stuck in the ice so they could make it in to work. With other senior staff unable to make it to the zoo due to the weather conditions, and very minimal staff to help, Hodge was able to keep all the animals safe and warm during the freezing temperatures. He worked very diligently to tend to the animals’ needs, stringing up extra heat lamps and constantly checking temperatures while manipulating the ice covered slopes of the zoo grounds.
Hodge also organized a winter cook out on zoo grounds to boost morale and join his fellow coworkers in this time of great distress.

January 2014

Jackie Jones - Garage Supervisor, General Services

Awarded Employee of the Month in recognition and appreciation for his dedication to the City of Gainesville.
Jackie exhibited exceptional and meritorious performance assisting the police department and officers during the recent ice storm that struck Gainesville during the month of December. Jackie installed chains on the patrol units over the duration of the bad weather weekend. He did this more than once during the period, installing and removing, then installing and removing again as conditions required. These chains allowed the officers to respond to calls and accidents in a timely and safe manner. It would have been extremely difficult for officers to have installed these chains themselves without the tools, equipment and guidance needed.
Jackie has always been available at request anytime to help with problems that have arisen with police units during and after business hours, whether it was a minor electrical issue or a major vehicle problem. His devotion to his job and his consistency to maintain a professional performance level helps to maintain a positive impact on the city and community, especially in times that require more than the norm.