For nearly 26 years, Daisy Powell, a cafeteria worker at Guilford High School in Rockford, Illinois, and a member of AFSCME Local 1275 (Council 31), has been driven by one thing: “To see a smile on my kids’ faces.”
By “my kids,” Powell is referring to the nearly 1,400 kids who pass through her cafeteria throughout the day.
Powell is a loving and steady presence and the students and staff can always count on her.
“I started work in 2001,” recalls Powell. “Since then, a lot has changed, but I’ve always enjoyed going to work. I love the kids and the people I work with.”
Her work day at the school often starts before 8 a.m., when breakfast is served. She clocks in, turns on the dishwasher, and gets all the supplies and food ready for the early morning rush of students.
“I like making sure the kids get a good meal every day. It makes me happy when their little stomachs fill up so they can take tests.”
In the cafeteria, Powell can be found putting out cold trays of fruits and vegetables, hauling in supplies from the supply truck, helping her colleagues in the kitchen, as well as working double lines of hot food during lunch.
Across the four shifts of service, Powell can be seen piling on fruit for the students and making sure they always have plenty of milk.
But her job is about a lot more than nourishing their bodies; she also nourishes their hearts.
“I had one little guy who came up to me after my father died. They had told the kids that I was going to be out. He said he cried all night because he didn’t think I was going to come back,” Powell recalls. “That gave me goosebumps.”
The unique role that Powell plays at Guilford is recognized by students, co-workers and school administrators alike.
Her colleague, Judith Johnson, nominated Powell for AFSCME’s Never Quit Service Award, saying: “I think that she is exceptional. She goes above and beyond every day.”
Powell says that her principal “always comes down and says the kids love all of you so much.” And her boss, Brittany Monreal, known to Powell and her co-workers as “Mrs. Brittany,” says the same thing: “Those kids love you.”
Always willing to lend a helping hand, to take on new responsibilities, Powell’s entire career has been about serving others.
She spent 20 years working at a hospital in Rockford, and 30 years working at McDonald’s, on the 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. shift, before she came to school. She continues to take shifts there.
Though Powell has been at Guilford High School for more than a quarter of a century, she doesn’t want to retire.
“There are so many people out there who just want their kids to have a good meal. As long as I’m there, I want to make sure I get the job done. I want all my kids to have a happy face,” she says. “That makes me really happy.”