Thursday, June 14, 2007

A wild couple of weeks for me!

Just last week I was informed that my employer, Fleetwood gaming's routes were going to be sold to Century gaming- its chief competitor. That meant my job was virtually eliminated after 15 years of service. Imagine my trepidation at what the future held for me. I was quite nervous and wondered at what a 46 year old man would do to pay the bills and support my family. While Fleetwood would continue as a gaming manufacturer, they would have no use for an account representative like me. My gut was being eaten full of holes!

This week I met with the nice folks at Century and they basically hired me on the spot. Not only would I get a job, but I would get paid at the same rate I had been used to and keep my seniority, vacation time, insurance and 401k. This was partly due to my former employer's input in actually giving a damn about his former employees. While I was sad to lose my position at Fleetwood, I am happy to give thanks to Jon Dehler and Fleetwood for going to bat for their people.

I have heard some say less than nice things about Jon when he donated money for Cobb field reconstruction. Some said he did it for publicity and naming rights only. I know he did it because he loves baseball and our fine community.

Thanks for a great job over the last 15 years Jon. May you continue to have success in the future. You were a great guy to work for. Thanks also to Steve and the gang at Century for giving me a shot. You won't be sorry.