GC’s Virginia receives Presidential Award

By Chelsea Weeks, News Editor  (Photo by Jacob Factor/The Bison)

With a smiling face and the coffee ready, Virginia Grammer was always ready to touch the lives of those on Bison Hill.

Thursday, March 29, at 10 a.m., OBU’s SGA presented the first ever “Presidential Award for Outstanding Service” to Grammer for her constant service and dedication to the students at OBU.

“Virginia knows the name, and often times the drink order, of most students and faculty who frequent Starbucks in the GC,” President of SGA, Hunter Doucette said. “She has a personal relationship with her customers, and that goes a long way on a college campus, when it is easy to be overwhelmed by school. Having someone smiling, following up on a conversation from months ago and knowing your name can really make a difference.”

Grammer was originally nominated for the SGA “Seven Who Care” awards, but unfortunately, she is leaving OBU and wouldn’t be able to receive the award.

SGA decided to create the “Presidential Award for Outstanding Service” in order to give her the recognition she deserved.

“This award is given to an individual who goes above and beyond what is required of the designated tasks of the position held,” Doucette said. “Thus it being the award for outstanding service. What is crucial for the recipient to possess, is the ability to establish personal relationships with those who they serve”.

The idea of the “Presidential Award for Outstanding Service” was inspired by Grammer and is intended to recognize the staff and faculty who work at OBU and may go unnoticed.

Jayme Byassee, a senior elementary education major had originally nominated Grammer for the Seven Who Care award for her impact on the student body.

Not only was Grammer a welcoming face with your order ready, but also a friend many students rely on.

Byassee said that Grammer taught her how to make time for other people and show others how much she cares for them.

“She has just been such an amazing friend,” Byassee said. “Somebody I know I can always count on going into the GC and welcoming me, asking me how I’m doing and to talk to me and to be able to just laugh about the most random of things. She is one person I can for sure say I know that actually really cares about me and others at the school.”

Caitlyn Mainord, a sophomore special education major, also shared her experiences
of Grammer going out of the way to make an impact.

“Last year she became one of the truest friends I’ve ever made,” Mainord said. “We have many memories of laughter, sadness, and hardship but there was one that stuck with me. Last April I heard some news about my cousin that the doctors had found a mass in her stomach, which we later determined wasn’t any harm to her, but at the time was devastating news to hear.”

Mainord said she then went to Virginia because she needed a listening ear.

“Later that week, she and my other dear friend Cristy Collins had brought a prayer cloth with her and they both prayed over me for comfort and reassurance. I’ve nicknamed them both my ‘Bison Mom’s’ because they both took me in like a daughter when I needed them the most. Virginia is one of the strongest, kindest, and hardest working woman I know.”