In the Co-Star (staff) dining room at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas we have our very own Fred.  His name is Van.

Van works in the staff dining room.  Thousands of Co-Stars pass through this dining room on a daily basis…hustling to get downstairs, make it through the food line, and ultimately find a seat at a table for their lunch break.  Some folks have a full hour, some have thirty minutes, and some have a quick 15 minutes to get food, find a seat, and get back up to the grind.  Folks working on the day shift are lucky enough to experience Van…

Van works the dining room…and I mean he actually works the dining room.  Cleaning tables, wiping down chairs, and assisting everyone as they return their trays to the conveyor belt, Van works the room.  Occasionally I’ll look up and see Van across the room, completely engaged in conversation with a fellow colleague…and 99% of the time that fellow colleague has a smile on their face.  Van brings it out in people.

Often times Van can be found right at the doorway; greeting, welcoming, and shaking hands with everyone as they enter the dining room.  I love it.  I always go with a, “what’s up, Van…how are you sir.”  Every time his face lights up with an excitable smile, and he gives me a compliment on my tie, shirt, or suit…every single time.

Last week I went to lunch with several members of our team.  Some of us had already sat down, but quickly realized that we didn’t have enough room for two more ladies that were on their way to the table.  Van overheard us talking, stopped what he was doing, started rearranging tables for us, and turned a four-top table into an eight-top…so we could all sit together.  Mind you, this was at the noon hour, which is the busiest time in the dining room.  We thanked him profusely, and all Van said was, “oh goodness, no problem at all…this way you all get to eat together.”

The other day the iced tea ran out before one of my friends could get a glass…Van brewed another pot, and tracked her down in the dining room to make sure she had her tea.  He also goes from department to department collecting glasses that are taken from the staff dining room…DURING HIS OWN BREAK TIME!

The staff dining room is on the basement level, and it has no windows.  However, we have a ray of sunshine that greets us, welcomes us, and makes us smile everyday…his name is Van.

Today I asked him how he manages to stay so happy.  Without hesitation he turned to me, gave me a half hand-shake / half-hug, and said, “…I go to church, my brother…”

All I could do was smile…

Have a great day.

Taylor

PS:  Wondering what FRED Friday is?  More here – http://goonemorestep.blogspot.com/2011/03/fred-friday.html