While in college, as part of my financial aid package, I worked for the college maintenance department. I had various manual skills, so the director would farm me out on different days with the different departments. One day I would work with the plumbers, another day with the carpenter, the next day I might be running the lawn mower cutting the grass of the expansive lawns on the college grounds. I learned a lot from those old guys that I worked with, and loved working there.
During the summer, the college would host the spring training of the Cincinnati Bengals, who would live in the dorms while training. The fall semester began about two weeks after the Bengals left, so the maintenance department would have that small window of opportunity to go into the dorm rooms, and put them into shape for the incoming students. The biggest thing that was needed, was stripping the old wax off the floors, and then putting on a new shiny coat of wax. One summer I was allowed to run the “strip crew” as they called us. It was full speed work, going from one room to another, removing the furniture, and using chemical stripper to remove the wax, then drying the floor, and then applying the new wax. And when it was dry and shiny, we would move the furniture back inside. My crew had 4 people, and it was hump time for that two weeks.
There was a very beautiful woman working on the strip crew that summer, whose name was Lisa. She was so mellow, a product, I guess, of her Quaker background, and I liked her a lot. Hard working, competent, and always had a smile for everybody. I looked forward to working with her every day. She could make a floor maintainer machine dance across the floor as we were stripping the old wax.
On breaks, we would sit and talk, and she always had a unique perspective on the world around us. And she was the first Quaker I had ever known as a friend, and her stories about her background were always interesting. She was a feminist, and a powerful woman, who seemed to have taken charge of her life. There were many strong women at the college, but Lisa stood out from them. She knew about all sorts of things, and there was always something for me to think about from our discussions. Lisa was a part of the colleges Organic Farm program, years before “Organic” became a catch phrase. I had lived on a farm as a kid, and we had that in common to talk about too. And she had, like my girlfriend, a wonderful world view, and I learned so much from her.
For the past 20 years, I have used my money and time to mentor young girls in Mexico, to teach them to take control of their lives, make good decisions, and graduate high school and college without becoming pregnant. Some of the most important things I have had to teach them in terms of making decisions, and creating a better life for themselves, came from my discussions with Lisa. I will always be in her debt for that. And my girls are the better for having heard my stories about her.
Strip Crew forever! 